Urea: China’s comeback aids India in securing 1.76m. tonnes, undermining bull rally and raising doubts over Q4 support levels

IPL made light work of securing a multi-year record volume through the latest import tender, almost exclusively owing to China’s return to the international stage. As much as 1.1m. tonnes of urea has been committed to India from China for shipment by 26 September, signaling the most significant export business since September 2021, when over…

Bullish sentiment persists; urea values rally buoyed by supply challenges, Indian demand and strong energy and grain fundamentals

Urea values stepped up another level in trading early this week, prolonging a rally that began mid-June and shows no signs of easing in the near-term. In latest business, Egyptian granular urea has traded at $450pt fob, up more than $165pt in a little over six weeks. Producer price ideas have now moved on with…

Yara enticed by new blue ammonia capacity in the US as European plants face uncertain future

  Yara plans to invest up to $2 billion in a second state-of-the-art blue ammonia plant as the Scandinavian group continues its push into low-carbon production capacity in the US and mulls permanent shutdowns of some European ammonia plants. Having recently set aside up to $1.45 billion for the full offtake of a 1.2-1.4m.t per…

Urea prices bolstered by supply cutbacks, Chinese export restraint and short covering for Europe

Pre-Indian tender negativity has given way to newfound producer optimism in the urea market. Business was finalised earlier this week in Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers’ (RCF) import tender, with the Middle East and Russia covering almost all business. The tender saw just 560,000t lined up against a target of 800,000t for shipment by 17 July.…

Bulgarian buyer set to roll out the red carpet for first blue ammonia shipment to Europe

European fertilizer market history will be made in around 10 days’ time when the first commercial shipment of blue ammonia ever marketed into the EU arrives at the Bulgarian port of Varna for Agropolychim. Produced and sold by Saudi major Ma’aden, the 25,000t cargo of low-carbon spot material will be discharged at the Black Sea…

Nitrogen fertilizer trader Fertiglobe sees Q1 bottom line pinched by falling prices

Fertiglobe posted single-digit increases in first quarter own-produced ammonia and urea sales volumes to 236,000t and 1.13m. tonnes, respectively, although lower prices meant adjusted net profit fell sharply to $135 million from $361 million in the year-ago period. The world’s largest seaborne exporter of urea and ammonia combined attributed the weaker performance to softer European gas…

Ammonia major OCI Global and pipeline operator NuStar ink deal for deliveries to the Midwest

OCI Global and NuStar Energy have signed a deal that will allow the Dutch fertilizer group to transport ammonia on a new segment of NuStar Pipeline Operating Partnership’s ammonia pipeline system. Under the arrangement, NuStar will install a new 14-mile section of pipeline that will connect OCI’s Iowa Fertilizer Company (IFCo) facility with NuStar’s existing…

Global ammonia prices still in the doldrums despite premium-priced spot sale into Northwest Europe

Ammonia demand remains sluggish both sides of the Suez heading into May, with the bearish tone illustrated by the latest slide in the Tampa contract. The $55pt month-on-month fall was not as severe as expected in some quarters and a subsequent spot sale for prompt delivery into Northwest Europe at a premium price was welcomed…