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Copyright © 2015 Argus Media Ltd

Argus FMB North American Fertilizer

Issue 15-34 | Thursday 27 August 2015

Market snapshotshighlights this week

� Urea barges trade down amid limited interest � Domestic MAP trades at $440/st fob Nola � Low MOP barge offers generate little interest � Volatile Chinese market sends soybean prices lower � New Chinese amsul cargoes booked for US

Fertilizers $/st27 aug prior week ±

Urea (g) fob Nola 273-282 274-287 -3 u

UAN 32pc fob Nola 205-210 208-212 -2 u

Ammonia Tampa cfr $/t 460-460 460-460 0 34

DAP fob Nola 430-435 430-435 0 34

MOP (g) fob Nola 300-305 300-305 0 34

Sulfur (molten) Tampa del qtly $/lt 137-137 137-137 0 34

Sulfuric acid US cfr $/t 65-69 65-69 0 34

spot freight from nola $/st27 aug prior week ±

St Louis 21.00 18.00 3.00 t

Inola 28.00 26.50 1.50 t

Cincinnati 26.00 26.00 0.00 34

Feedstock for nitrogen27 aug prior week ±

Henry Hub $/mmBtu 2.690 2.750 -0.060 u

NIT/AECO $/mmBtu 2.170 2.260 -0.090 u

NH3 COP $/st 128.61 129.43 -0.82 u

Crop fundamentals, Cbot $/bushelsep 15 Dec 15 Mar 16 sep 16 Dec 16

Corn 3.65 3.77 3.88 3.93 3.99

Wheat 4.93 4.98 5.04 5.20 5.34

Soybean 8.91 na 8.81 8.75 na

related markets27 aug prior week ±

WTI month $/bl 39.72 41.79 -2.07 u

Copper $/lb 2.30 2.32 -0.02 u

Ethanol Chicago ¢/USG 144 147 -3 u

Ethanol Cbot crush spread $/bushel 0.37 0.46 -0.09 u

View the methodology used to assess fertilizer prices at www.argusmedia.com/methodology.Your feedback is always welcome at [email protected].

ContentsNorth American products price list 2

Freight rates price list 6

Nitrogen 7

Ammonia 10

Phosphate 11

Potash 13

Sulfur and sulfuric acid 14

Fertilizer news 14

soybeans vs phosphate

hhh

800

900

1,000

1,100

2 Oct 14 29 Jan 15 14 May 15 27 Aug 15400

425

450

475

Soybeans (left scale) c/bushel MAP (right scale) $/st

DAP (right scale) $/st

Corn vs nitrogen

hhh

350

400

450

500

2 Oct 14 29 Jan 15 14 May 15 27 Aug 15200

250

300

350

Corn (left scale) c/bushel Urea (right scale) $/st

UAN (right scale) $/st

Licensed to: Jennifer Eyring, Argus Media Inc (Houston)

Copyright © 2015 Argus Media Ltd of 19

Issue 15-34 | Thursday 27 August 2015Argus FMB North American Fertilizer

27 Aug Prior week ± Year ago

Urea (g) $/st

Nola* barge fob 273-282 274-287 -3 u 343-360

Nola barge prompt fob 273-279 274-285 -4 u 350-360

Nola barge VWA 276.57 281.45 -4.88 u 353.94

Nola cfr t import eq 295-305 297-311 -4 u 370-389

Inola/Catoosa fot 320-325 320-325 0 34 425-435

St Louis fot 320-325 320-325 0 34 415-425

Cincinnati/Jeffersonville fot 325-330 325-330 0 34 395-405

Twin Cities fot 320-325 320-325 0 34 390-400

Urea (p) $/st

Nola barge fob, dry 290-295 308-310 -16 u 349-354

Nola barge fob, melt 275-280 280-285 -5 u 320-325

UAN $/unit N, unless noted

Nola barge fob st 32% 205-210 208-212 -2 u 238-243

Nola cfr t import eq 32% 219-224 222-227 -3 u 255-261

St Louis 7.81-8.13 7.81-8.13 0.00 34 8.91-9.22

Cincinnati/Jeffersonville 7.81-8.13 7.81-8.13 0.00 34 8.91-9.22

Dubuque/Winona 7.81-8.13 7.81-8.13 0.00 34 8.91-9.22

E Coast cfr t 215-220 218-220 -2 u 251-252

Ammonium nitrate (p) $/st

Nola barge fob 250-260 250-260 0 34 300-310

Nola cfr t import eq 269-280 269-280 0 34 324-335

Tampa fot 330-340 330-340 0 34 375-385

Mid South fot 315-330 315-330 0 34 360-380

Ammonium sulfate (g) $/st

Houston/Pasadena fot 240-250 240-250 0 34 230-230

Corn Belt fot 270-280 270-280 0 34 275-280

Ammonia $/st, unless noted

Tampa cfr t contract 460-460 460-460 0 34 570-570

Caribbean fob t 420-420 420-420 0 34 530-530

Nola barge fob 440-450 457-457 -12 u 520-530

US Gulf cfr t 465-465 465-465 0 34 575-575

Oklahoma ex-works 470-480 470-480 0 34 600-615

E Corn Belt fot 545-565 545-565 0 34 630-660

W Corn Belt fot 530-555 530-555 0 34 620-660

g = granular, p = prilled * = short for New Orleanst = metric tonne fob = free on boardst = short ton fot = free on truckstd = standard lt = long ton; eq = equivalent

North American price list

27 Aug Prior week ± Year ago

DAP $/st, unless noted

Nola barge fob 430-435 430-435 0 34 435-445

Nola fob t export eq 489-495 489-495 0 34 495-506

Tampa fob t (exports) 463-463 463-465 -1 u 490-500

Nola barge import eq (ex-Mor) 463-481 463-486 -2 u 500-518

Central Florida rail 430-430 430-430 0 34 430-440


St Louis fot 460-465 460-465 0 34 480-485


Twin Cities fot 460-465 460-465 0 34 485-490

MAP $/st, unless noted

Nola barge fob 438-440 440-442 -2 u 480-485

Nola fob t export eq 498-500 500-502 -2 u 544-550

Nola barge import eq (ex-Russ) 456-465 456-465 0 u 479-497


St Louis fot 470-475 470-475 0 34 505-510


Twin Cities fot 470-475 470-475 0 34 505-510

Potash-MOP (g) $/st, unless noted

Nola barge fob 300-305 300-305 0 34 365-370

Corn Belt fot 330-345 335-345 -2 u 400-410

Vancouver fob t std (exports) 275-315 275-315 0 34 270-325

Sulfur (formed) $/t

Vancouver fob 138-143 142-153 -7 u 160-165

Sulfuric acid $/t

US cfr vessel import 65-69 65-69 0 34 67-72

27 Aug Prior quarter ± Year ago

Sulfur (molten) $/lt

Tampa del qtly 137 132 5 t 136

$/unit ¢/lb

Barge price to nutrient values

Urea, N 6.03 30.16

UAN, N 6.48 32.42

AN, N 7.50 37.50

Ammonia, N 5.41 27.05

DAP, P205 7.28 36.42

MAP, P205 7.30 36.49

Potash, K20 5.04 25.21




UREA pRicing sERiEs

AmmoniA pRicing sERiEs

internationalUrea

hhh

200

300

400

$/t

5 Jun 14 30 Oct 14 2 Apr 15 27 Aug 15

Yuzhny fob Egypt fobArabian Gulf fob US barge fob

internationalAmmonia

hhh

300

400

500

600

700

$/t

5 Jun 14 30 Oct 14 2 Apr 15 27 Aug 15

Tampa cfr Yuzhny fobMiddle East fob Caribbean fob

� Urea barge prices weaken again on mostly thin buying interest

� Pre-river close interest begins to surface, but majority of demand perceived to be still ahead

� Weak paper market adds pressure to physical UAN barge ideas

� CF sells 40,000t UAN cargo for Q4 shipment to France

� Brazilian granular urea offers drop but bids still much lower, curbing demand

� Fertil sells Middle East granular urea at $293/t fob to Africa, but other netbacks suggest sub-$280/t

� Algeria’s AOA to alternate new urea lines through 2015

� US faces influx of Chinese ammonium sulfate over coming month

outlook: Stable-to-weak

Physical prices have largely held their ground, but limited fresh demand and lower paper values have given the global market a weaker tone. The US market could see a river-close bump, but projects to be pressured heading into the fourth quarter.

� Oklahoma ex-works buying activity supported by wheat pre-plant activity

� Corn Belt prices stay flat as buyers remain on sidelines

� Market awaits settlement of Tampa September price as with buy/sell ideas understood to be far apart

� Cargo of CF product headed to Europe or Morocco ex-US Gulf coast

� BASF in Belgium buys PCS cargo ex-Trinidad

� Supply in Middle East and Europe remains tight with up-coming maintenance to add further pressure

� Rossosh to start 30-day maintenance next week, tighten-ing supply ex-Yuzhny

outlook: Stable

Spot activity was limited as supply remains tight on a global basis. A number of scheduled turnarounds at some major exporting plants are expected to further tighten supply in September which could result in firmer prices.




DAP Pricing series

PotAsh Pricing series

internationalDAP

hhh

350

400

450

500

550

$/t

5 Jun 14 30 Oct 14 2 Apr 15 27 Aug 15

Morocco fob China fobBaltic fob US barge fob

internationalPotash

hhh

250

300

350

400

$/t

5 Jun 14 30 Oct 14 2 Apr 15 27 Aug 15

Vancouver fob FSU fobUS barge fob India cfr

� DAP Nola price flat on limited liquidity

� MAP premium to DAP at an average $6/st, down from the 2014 average of $20/st

� Mexican MAP vessel for US delayed to October, potential for diversion remains

� Chinese producers unsuccessful in pushing prices higher on account of VAT implementation, reports of deal done to India at $465/t cfr

� Buyers in India comfortable amid heavy import line up while rupee depreciation continues to impact price ideas

� In Europe, some buyer interest has emerged following the rise of the euro against the dollar

� Most producers, with exception of Mexico’s Fertinal, have substantial tonnage to place for September

� Buying activity remains stubbornly limited

� Prompt open origin barge offers in mid-$290s/st fob Nola failed to attract buyers

� Corn Belt warehouse offers drop as low as $330/st fot

� Uralkali expects 2015 US demand to fall 14-16pc year-over-year to 8.6mn-8.7mn t

� Russian producer also warns VAT and currency devalua-tion could hurt Chinese demand

� BHP says Jansen project reaches 46pc completion, still progressing slowly

� Brazil prices flat at $315-325/t cfr amid still-lagging demand

� Belarus’ BPC sells 25,000t standard/granular MOP to Vietnam

outlook: Weak

Volatile equity and global commodity markets have added another layer of uncertainty to the potash market and fur-ther discouraged buying. Producers continue to ship con-tracted volumes with spot activity still limited.

outlook: Weaker

The outlook turned increasingly bearish this week as cur-rency depreciation, uncertainty of China’s VAT fertilizer policy and weaker crop sentiment contributed to a wait-and-see tone in the market. Chinese sellers have not been able to push prices higher while demand in India is stagnant. Liquidity in Latin America remains virtually non-existent.




Fundamentals

agricultureWeather: The Midwest experienced mostly dry weather over the last week, with rains primarily confined to central Iowa and southwestern Missouri, according to the National Oce-anic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Heavy rains were seen in North Dakota and northern Minnesota, with more than 2.5 inches falling in spots.

The precipitation outlook over the next two week skews drier while temperatures are likely to increase. Rain chances in the Corn Belt are projected at normal levels in the 6-10 day outlook, transitioning to slightly above average in the 11-15 day outlook, according to NOAA. The Southern Plains are likely to be drier than normal. The entire US east of the Rocky Mountains is likely to see above-normal temperatures over the next two weeks, with the highest chances clustered in the eastern Corn Belt and bleeding into the northeast.

Crop progress: The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Crop Progress report showed stable-to-better conditions for US soybeans compared to the prior week, bolstering the outlook for strong yields for this year's crop. Soybeans rated in good or excellent condition across the top 18 producing states remained flat at 63pc.

Soybean ratings improved across the Corn Belt, which rep-resents 43pc of the estimated planted crop area this year. Illinois and Missouri ratings each improved by two percent-age points to 52pc and 33pc good/excellent, respectively. Each mark matched the highest level since 5 July. Indiana's soybeans improved by a point to 47pc good/excellent, the best since 28 June.

The US soybean crop continues to develop near the histori-cal pace with 87pc now setting pods, down a point from the

five-year average. Missouri is experiencing the only signifi-cant delays at 52pc setting pods versus the 74pc average because of rain-delayed plantings earlier this year.

Corn conditions were largely unchanged from the prior week. In the top 18 producing states, corn rated good or ex-cellent again stood at 69pc. Conditions in the Corn Belt were mostly stable. Missouri corn rated good/excellent improved by a point to 51pc, while Indiana fell by a point to 47pc.

Corn reaching the dented stage stands at 39pc, trailing the 43pc five-year average, while 85pc has reached the dough stage, ahead of the 81pc average.

Crop prices: A volatile week for commodity and equity markets affected crop futures, particularly soybeans, which are dependent on Chinese demand. Front-month soybean fu-tures pushed beyond last week’s six-year low, trading down to $8.74/bushel on 24 August. Prices rebounded as high as $9.08/bushel the next day before finally ending the week at $8.86/bushel, which still marks a 35¢/bushel fall from last week. November soybeans set a new contract low at $8.55/bushel on 24 August before recovering slightly to $8.79/bushel to end the week.

Corn prices were a stable exception this week and mostly trended sideways. The December futures contract spent the week mostly between $3.70-3.80/bushel, closing the week at $3.75/bushel.

Crude oil prices drew much attention this week after hitting a six-year low below $39/bl before rallying on 27 August by $4/bl, the biggest one-day jump since 2009.

FeedstockUS natural gas futures finished lower to end the week on a government report showing a large injection into gas

us most active soybean harvesting dates

19 Aug 10 Sep 2 Oct 24 Oct 15 Nov 7 Dec

ARILINIA

KSMI

MNMSMONENCOHSDTXWI

— USDA

us most active corn harvesting dates

30 Jul 19 Aug 8 Sep 28 Sep 18 Oct 7 Nov 27 Nov

ARILINIA

KSMI

MNMSMONENCOHSDTXWI

— USDA




Ammonia margin vs natural gas

hhh

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

18 Sep 14 15 Jan 15 7 May 15 27 Aug 15400

500

600

700

Henry Hub (left scale) $/mnBtu

Ammonia producer margin (right scale) $/st

Spot freight barges $/st27 Aug Prior week

Mississippi river

Old River through Cairo 18.00-20.00 15.00-17.00

St Louis 20.00-22.00 17.00-19.00

Louisiana thru Clinton 21.00-23.00 20.00-22.00

Dubuque 23.00-25.00 23.00-25.00

Winona 24.00-27.00 24.00-27.00

St Paul 28.00-30.00 28.00-30.00

Arkansas river

Pine Bluff thru Little Rock 22.50-24.50 20.00-22.00

Inola/Catoosa 27.00-29.00 25.00-28.00

Ohio river

Paducah 21.00-23.00 20.00-22.00

Mt Vernon thru Owensboro 22.00-24.00 20.00-22.00

Jeffersonville thru Louisville 23.00-25.00 23.00-25.00

Cincinnati 25.00-27.00 25.00-27.00

East Liverpool 28.50-32.00 27.00-30.00

Illinois river

Naples thru Peoria 21.50-23.50 20.00-22.00

Hennepin thru La Salle 23.00-25.00 23.00-25.00

Ottawa 23.50-25.50 23.00-25.00

Joliet 26.00-28.00 26.00-28.00

Demurrage $/day (midpoint) 400.00-500.00 400.00-500.00

Northbound rates originating from miles 90-184 for dry, bulk fertilizers.

* No freight rates available based on seasonal closures.

storage, signaling that production gains were offsetting last week's increase in weather-related demand.

Nymex gas for September delivery fell by 5.5¢/mmBtu, or 2pc, to settle at $2.638/mmBtu. The 12-month strip declined by 0.9pc to $2.851/mmBtu, while the 2016-calendar strip was down by 0.6pc to $2.939/mmBtu. The September contract expired today. The more heavily traded October contract shed 3.9¢/mmBtu, settling at $2.664/mmBtu.

Prices faced downward pressure after the US Energy Infor-mation Administration (EIA) reported that gas inventories in the week ended 21 August grew by 69 Bcf (2bn m³), topping expectations in an Argus survey for a build of 59 Bcf. The increase last week compares with a year-earlier build of 77 Bcf and a five-year-average injection of 61 Bcf.

The US gas market is approaching the 1 September start of the fall shoulder season, when milder seasonal weather limits gas demand and injections into gas storage pick up. But low gas prices could stoke additional demand this fall from the power generation sector as utilities substitute gas for coal.

TransCanada has agreed to increase capacity on a new natu-ral gas line in eastern Canada in order to better enable the pipeline company to move ahead with its contentious plan to convert one of its mainlines to oil from natural gas.

The pipeline company said it reached agreements with Gaz Metro, Enbridge Gas Distribution and Union Gas to provide gas consumers in eastern Canada with sufficient natural gas transmission capacity and lower transmission costs. Under the agreements, TransCanada will size its Eastern Mainline project to have 50mn cf/d (1.4mn m³/d) more than its cur-

FreightConditions on the Arkansas river have worsened temporarily, moving barge rates higher.

Recent high water deposited high levels of silt in a num-ber of spots along the river, forcing the US Army Corps of Engineers to step in and dredge so barges can move through safely.

Work has been completed near Gore, Oklahoma, and will be finished shortly in Ozark, Oklahoma. Dredging will then move south to the Little Rock, Arkansas, area.

rent firm transportation requirements, which have not been announced.

TransCanada's intention to change one of its mainlines to oil service raised concerns from Canadian natural gas consum-ers and regulators on whether gas reliability in Ontario and Quebec would be sacrificed by the move. But TransCanada has argued that the line conversion affects a gas export route to the US that is no longer needed, and that its planned gas projects in Ontario and Quebec, including its Eastern Mainline project, will ensure adequate supply.




VWA deals snapshot

hh

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Volume

273 275 277 278 279 282

Prices

Urea barge business $/stPrice Volume Loading Product VWA

271 1 4Q non-Chinese

273 1 prompt non-Chinese yes

275 1 pre-river close non-Chinese yes

275 4 Sep non-Chinese yes

275 2 prompt non-Chinese yes



279 1 loaded non-Chinese yes

279 2 pre-river close non-Chinese yes


NitrogeN

Macroeconomic factors added another layer of caution to almost every commodity market this week, nitrogen in-cluded. Buying interest remained mostly limited aside from a smattering of activity in the urea market, where demand for fall tonnage has yet to truly emerge. However, the expecta-tion is for another rush of urea buying ahead of the upcom-

ing winter closure of the Mississippi river before the market faces more pressure in the fourth quarter. UAN looks weaker based on first quarter swaps levels this week, reflecting anticipated new domestic production coming online.

Urea (g)The US granular urea market weakened over the course of the week before finding its footing as of press time.

Urea barges for loading within 30 days traded from $273-282/st fob Nola this week, down by $3/st on a midpoint basis from last week. The market for September-loading barges illustrated the trading pattern, with deals at the high end of the assessment done late last week before moving to the mid-$270s/st fob Nola mid-week. Prompt/loaded barges continued to be priced at a mild discount to September or pre-river close product, trading from $273-279/st fob Nola. There were reports of September urea trading as low as $271/st fob Nola, with the lower price a function of higher spot freight rates, but this was not confirmed at press time.

The wide spread between spot and contract freight rates sustained itself this week, resulting in multiple delivered

The US Coast Guard has restricted barges to a depth of 8ft 6inches north of Little Rock, but will allow barges loaded to 9ft below that point. The lower depth will likely hold up a number of heavier barges because they will be unable to meet depth limits. Shippers and operators would find it too expensive to lighten barges loaded in New Orleans to meet a temporary depth restriction.

The northbound fertilizer barge rate for destinations be-tween Pine Bluff and Little Rock rose to $22.50-24.50/short ton, up from $20-22/st during the prior week. Rates to docks in the Inola/Catoosa hub increased to $27-29/st, up from $25-28/st last week.

Barge shipments had been rising on the Arkansas during the last few weeks, allowing shippers to catch up on shipments that were delayed while the river was closed because of high water in early summer. A backlog of equipment held in Rosedale, Mississippi, is slowly being whittled away to 75-80 barges.

Upcoming lock outages on the Arkansas, which will further delay shipments, are also pressuring rates.

Overall on the inland rivers, demand for fertilizer barges is far lower than last year and closer to traditional levels. But requests for spot movements have slowed recently, reflect-ing a slow grain market.

Grain is generally a driver for fertilizer barge rates during the fall along with demand for nutrients. But lately demand has been limited so river conditions have been a larger fac-tor than normal in determining rates.

Much of the harvest this year has been delayed by late planting because of bad weather. Farmers are not moving stockpiled grain because of low global prices and instead are trying to capture the market carry, the premium offered by distant-month futures or lower freight rates that come at the end of the year.




barge offers. Bids for delivered barges to the Twin Cities market for pre-river close shipment firmed to $296/st at press time, up from $290/st earlier in the week.

Fourth quarter trades remain limited with one confirmed at $271/st fob Nola, down by $5/st from business concluded last week for that time period. First quarter non-Chinese granu-lar urea was offered at $280/st fob Nola.

US granular urea prices have mostly held from $275-285/st fob Nola for all of August, but this week’s assessment marks the lowest level on a midpoint basis since 16 April. General expectation is for the market to firm in early September as buyers in need of tons ahead of river close have held off on most of their buying needs so far. Price upside appears limited by a healthy lineup of imports in September. More regionally, Canadian urea has been reportedly offered more aggressively into the Northern Plains and Twin Cities, poten-tially cutting into some demand for pre-river close barges from wholesalers in the area.

Depressed corn prices have often been cited as a bearish factor for fertilizer prices, but urea could be more insulated than other products. Front-month corn futures this week

Urea imports by port area mn t

0

1

2

3

4

5

Nola East Coast California Texas Other

2012-13 2013-14 2014-15

Arkansas River

UpperMississippi

River

LowerMississippi

River

Ohio

Riv

erIllinoisRiver

All freight points are pricedfrom origin of mile 90-184 of Lower Mississippi River

Twin Cities

fot 322.50

freight 29.00

Cincinnati/Jeffersonville

fot 327.50

freight 24.00-26.00

Inola/Catoosa

fot 322.50

freight 28.00

St Louis

fot 322.50

freight 21.00

Nola

fob 277.50

Urea prICeS aNd barge freIghT from NoLa ($/ST)

held in the $3.60s/bushel range, which is actually higher than prices at this time a year ago, which were about 5-10¢/bushel lower. Granular urea barge prices, on the other hand, are $74/st lower on a midpoint basis this week than a year ago, suggesting end user cost in a year where grower incomes will be cut because of lower grain prices (See Fer-tilizer news).

Urea warehouse prices were unchanged from a week ago, though prices could be moving down soon in Inola/Catoosa




market where sellers have seen some resistance to the $320/st fot mark amid cooling demand and lower barge prices.

In imports, PetroChina is reported to be loading a combina-tion cargo of 30,000t granular urea plus prilled and ammo-nium sulfate.

Urea (p)Offers for feed grade prilled urea dropped this week in part because of lower granular prices. Feed grade prills are now

indicated in the low-$290s/st fob Nola, down from last con-firmed business two weeks ago around $308-310.st fob Nola.

No new business for melt grade prills was confirmed, with the assessment lowered by $5/st to $275-280/st fob Nola to reflect the weaker prices for feed grade, which typically trades at a premium.

International urea highlights � In Brazil, suppliers have lowered offers of Middle East

granular urea for September shipment to $300-305/t cfr to southern ports in an effort to entice buyers back into the market with little success. Bids remain around $290-293/t cfr and September paper market prices have traded down to $290/t cfr.

� In the Middle East, Fertil sold 25,000t of granular urea to an African market at $293/t fob Ruwais for September shipment, $10/t higher than the last spot sale. Despite this, netbacks from all other markets suggest fob prices all below $280/t.

� In Algeria, AOA is producing urea from one line at its new complex and plans to continue to alternate produc-tion between the two 3,500 t/day production lines until the end of the year. AOA is not offering any September tonnage beyond what it has already allocated with traders.

UANActivity in the UAN market continued to be slow this week, but sub-$200/st fob Nola paper prices added a weaker tone to the physical side. Fourth quarter paper bids fell into the low/mid-$190s/st fob Nola this week while first quarter swaps were done at $197/st fob Nola.

While no physical business was confirmed this week, the backwardated paper market has further discouraged prompt buying interest, which has already been muted given com-fortable tank inventories after strong buy-in to the summer fill program. The barge assessment is adjusted down to $205-210/st fob Nola notionally in the absence of confirmed transactions.

In exports, it is understood that a third 40,000t cargo of US UAN has been sold for fourth quarter shipment to France from CF Industries.

UAN imports to Nola grew by 20pc year-over-year to 544,235t for the 2014-15 fertilizer year, according to customs data. Trinidad was the largest supplier at 277,538t followed

Estimated incoming urea vesselsMonth Origin '000t CommentsJuly 532China PetroChina 55China Trammo 35Egypt OCI 25Algeria Indagro 28Oman Koch 40Saudi Arabia Sabic 60Kuwait Ameropa 35Kuwait CHS 44Qatar CHS 45UAE Trammo 40UAE CHS 40UAE trader 40Russia Eurochem 15Russia Eurochem 30August 573Russia Eurochem 30Saudi Arabia Sabic 60Kuwait CHS 40Indonesia CHS 30UAE CHS 35Qatar Koch 45UAE Ameropa 35Kuwait Gavilon 90UAE Keytrade 33UAE Trammo 35Qatar CHS 45Trinidad PCS 25Algeria Nitron 25Qatar Yara 45September 528Qatar Yara 45Oman Koch 50China PetroChina 55Saudi Arabia Sabic 60Bahrain Gavilon 44Kuwait CHS 44Trinidad PCS 35UAE Trammo 35UAE CHS 35Indonesia Ameropa 30 west coastIndonesia Koch 30 west coastQatar Koch 45Russia Eurochem 20YTD total 1633July-Sep 2014 1489change 144% change 10




Estimated incoming UAN vesselsMonth Origin ’000t Comments

Aug Russia 40 US Gulf

Aug Russia 27 USEC

Aug Russia 30 USEC

Aug Russia 30 USEC

Sep Russia 33 USEC

Sep Russia 40 USEC

by Russia, Romania and China each shipping around 70,000-80,000t.

East coast import interest also remains limited with most participants in the region having some inventory on hand and no urgent need to buy with the next demand push not likely until January. EuroChem still has about 16,000t of late-September arriving Russian UAN on offer at $220/t cfr against bids around $215/t cfr, setting this week’s range.

US UAN imports to east coast fell to 946,248t in the 2014-15 fertilizer year, down by 7pc from 2013-14, according to customs data. Wilmington, North Carolina, accounted for 381,853t of the total, with 280,137t from Russia. And rest

AMMONiA

The Tampa price for September remains unsettled with Mosaic‘s and Yara’s price ideas understood to be far apart. A contributing factor is said to be Mosaic’s reported purchase of Venezuelan volume from Nitron as reported last week. The deal is thought to have been concluded well below the August Tampa price of $460/t cfr and weighing into Mosaic’s price ideas in addition to reported length in the domestic system.

Some supply that had been overhanging the domestic market will be eased as it is understood a cargo of CF ammonia is

UAN imports by port areas mn t

0.0

0.3

0.6

0.9

1.2

1.5

Nola East Coast California Texas Other

— US customs

2012-13 2013-14 2014-15

UAN imports 2014-15, select ports ’000t

0 100 200 300 400 500 600

Wilmington, NC

Stockton, CA

Nola

Texas

Baltimore, MD

Mobile, AL

Norfolk, VA

Philaldelphia, PA

— US customs

Russia Egypt Bulgaria Romania Lithuania Trinidad China Netherlands

split between Egypt, Bulgaria, Romania and Lithuania.

Ammonium nitrate (p)Ammonium nitrate activity remains seasonally quiet with barges reportedly still available at $250-260/st fob Nola. The Tampa market remained stable at $330-340/st fot, a level it has maintained since mid-June.

Ammonium sulfate (g)The ammonium sulfate market it mostly stable, with some anticipating coming price pressure because of imminent Chinese imports. Corn Belt prices maintained the $270-280/st fot level amid limited prompt demand.

Delivered barge prices to lower Mississippi locations are indi-cated at $240/st for domestic product, with imports carrying about a $10/st discount.

In the Northern Plains, domestic tons are heard at $270/st delivered to the Twin Cities and South Dakota, and $280/st delivered to Montana. Canada markets near the US border have seen higher pressure with a dry growing season in that country cutting some demand and leading to an increase in supply. Offers in the region are indicated at $270-275/st delivered, down by about $40-50/st from the spring peak.

In imports, Gavilon is understood to have 55,000t of com-pacted granular Chinese amsul arriving imminently to Nola. PetroChina is also shipping a small lot of Chinese amsul in combination with urea for September arrival. Another trader is loading 30,000t of Chinese amsul for the US in combina-tion with another product.

In exports, Oakley is in the freight market to load 10,000t amsul ex-Galveston for shipment to two ports in Colombia.




headed to Europe, or possibly Morocco, from Donaldsonville, Louisiana. Market participants say any continued length in the region will subside once CF commences operations of new consuming capacity at Donaldsonville at the end of September.

Supply is expected to tighten further once gas curtailments to ammonia producers in the Caribbean increase by around 30pc by mid-September and demand for fall application in the US picks up.

There remains limited liquidity in the barge market, but this week the US Gulf assessment was notionally lowered to $440-450/st fob from $457/st fob as levels above $450/st are no longer considered achievable. Again, availability of sup-ply in the domestic system is being cited as the reason for limited activity.

Prices in the west and east Corn Belt were flat this week with limited business being done. Buyers are said to have pulled back after a good volume of fall tons moved earlier this month. Market expectations are that activity will pick up by late September as buyers prepare for fall applications. Lower crop prices are having a limited impact on sentiment with participants indicating it will have a more pronounced impact on phosphate and potash demand.

After the Oklahoma ex-works price firmed last week to $470-480/st, suppliers report wheat pre-plant activity in parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas is providing support.

During the first half of the year, the US imported 2.8mn t of ammonia, up by just under 14pc compared with the volume imported during the first half of 2014. Volumes delivered from Trinidad and Tobago, Canada, Russia and the Ukraine increased compared with last year while volumes from Ven-ezuela were down. Imports from Algeria and Turkey were

recorded during the first half of the year compared with no product sourced from there in the prior-year period. In contrast, no imports from Saudi Arabia were seen during the six-month period compared with 2014, indicative of the tight supply there.

International ammonia highlights � There are indications PCS has sold a 23,000t cargo from

Trinidad for mid-September delivery to BASF in Antwerp, Belgium.

� In Saudi Arabia, Sabic reported its MPC ammonia plant remains down and no surplus is expected until the end of September from Ras al-Khair. Sabic is expected to struggle to cover contract commitments as a result and will have not have any spot cargoes to sell. If any surplus becomes avail-able, price indications are at least $440/t fob.

US ammonia imports by country t

Jun 15 Jun 14 Change Jan-Jun 15

Jan-Jun 14 Change

Trindad & Tobago 297,982 250,971 18.7% 1,753,644 1,652,736 6.1%

Canada 97,949 82,343 19.0% 581,268 452,178 28.5%

Russia 83,365 10,008 733.0% 239,235 49,914 379.3%

Ukraine 19,984 29,903 -33.2% 118,702 109,812 8.1%

Venezuela -- 32,925 -- 62,336 161,721 -61.5%

Algeria -- -- -- 39,919 -- --

Turkey -- -- -- 23,385 -- --

Others 530 46,931 -98.9% 1,873 53,521 -99.9%

Total 499,810 453,081 10.3% 2,820,362 2,479,882 13.7%

— US customs

PhoSPhate

There remains limited liquidity in barge trading as market participants remain largely on the sidelines. The sentiment is slightly bearish impacted by concerns over lower crop prices and the impact it will have on farmer economics and therefore, phosphate consumption. The potential to attract additional imports thereby putting downward pressure on prices is also being discussed.

The DAP barge price was assessed this week at $430-435/st fob Nola, unchanged on last week. There were firm bids for domestic product as low as $430/st fob Nola against offers as high as $435/st fob Nola. There does not appear to be any import volume on offer at present as suppliers wait for import cargoes to arrive and for demand to improve. Initial import price ideas are around $430/st fob Nola but it is likely business could be achieved below this level. There were reports of non-Chinese product for October on offer as low as $420/st fob Nola.

The MAP assessment was lowered to $438-440/st fob Nola this week from $440-442/st fob Nola, underpinned by one trade and a firm bid. As with last week, this illustrates the downward pressure on the MAP premium to DAP, which now stands at an average of $6/st. In 2014, the average premium for MAP over DAP was around $20/st. So far this year, the average has narrowed to just under $7/st. The recent downward pressure has been attributed to upcoming imports being skewed towards MAP over DAP. The import line up between the first half of August and the second half




US phosphate import tracker

Arrival OriginDAP est.

’000t

MAP est.

’000tTrader Comments

1H Aug China 20 10 Indagro

2H Aug Russia 30 Trader

1H Sep China 60 Traders

1H Sep Morocco 10 35

2H Sep Russia 10 EuroChem combo vessel



TOTAL 110 165

Phosphate barge businessPrice in $/st fob Nola

Number of barges Loading Product

440 1 loaded domestic MAP

of September is comprised of an estimated 195,000t of MAP compared with an estimated 110,000t of DAP.

Terminal offtake remains limited and prices flat. Prices could firm if demand improves as expected and those offering import product without contract freight rates in place try to pass along higher transportation costs. This remains depen-dent on farmer demand, with some expecting application rates will decline because of the aforementioned concerns regarding farmer economics.

In the import market, a Mexican MAP cargo has been pushed back to October and will most likely not be delivered to the US. Meanwhile, there are indications that more Russian product could be sent to the US. While Morocco’s shipment volumes to the US are unchanged, it is understood they are being prioritized over shipments to Brazil. There are three cargoes from Morocco totaling 145,000t in the lineup with one already shipped.

DAP/MAP barge price comparison

-10

0

10

20

30

40

50

380

400

420

440

460

480

500

Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Oct 14 Feb 15 May 15 Aug 15

$/st

$/st

DAP Nola MAP Nola MAP premium, right

MAP price comparison

-40

-20

0

20

40

60

80

435

455

475

495

515

535

555

Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Oct 14 Feb 15 May 15 Aug 15

$/t

$/t

Nola barge Brazil cfr Nola premium, right

In the export market, Mosaic sold small lots of DAP to Latin America at $463/t fob Tampa for September shipment, within the currently assessed range.

US exports updateThe US exported 196,600st P2O5 DAP/MAP in July accord-ing to latest TFI data, up marginally by 1.6pc compared to July 2014. However, year-to-date exports are up over 9pc on stronger shipments to India.

For July, the main recipient was also India which took 52,253st P2O5, or 27pc of the total exported volume. Other major recipients included Canada (34,735st P2O5 or 18pc), Brazil with 29,027st P2O5 or 15pc, and Argentina with 21,080st P2O5.

For the calendar year-to-date, total DAP/MAP exports reached 1.358mn st, up 9.1pc on the same period of 2014.

Much of the growth can be attributed to a major hike in DAP exports to India which has so far taken 227,874 st P2O5 DAP/MAP in 2015. This follows Mosaic's spot sales to India at the start of the kharif season as well as movements to its own distribution system. The volume represents a 190pc increase on shipments in 2014, although this partly reflects the dearth of demand in India last year and the correspondingly earlier-than-normal return of Indian import demand this year due to low stocks.

The largest recipient for January-July is Brazil with 377,195 st P2O5, a decline of nearly 3pc. Considering the substantial fall in Brazilian imports of MAP generally because of cur-rency depreciation and a lack of farmer credit, the perfor-mance is robust. Canada took 134,125 st P2O4, a decline of 34.4pc. Colombia received 94,800st P2O5, up nearly 25pc. Mexico took 86,288st P2O5, a rise of 22pc, possibly reflect-




ing lower indigenous production during 2015. Contract buyers Australia and Japan took 71,000st P2O5 and 69,000st P2O5 respectively. Australian shipments are so far down by nearly a third, reflecting greater competition in the Austra-lian market with multiple suppliers now shipping product there.

International phosphate highlights � While Chinese producers aimed to push DAP offers to

around $470-475/t fob for September tonnes to recoup costs from the implementation of the 13pc VAT, price ideas are now in the $460-465/t fob range. There are reports of Chinese DAP being offered to Pakistan at $470/t cfr, or around $450/t fob.

� In India, the rupee is under downward pressure result-ing in buyers revising down prices ideas. Bids are down to $460/t cfr and there are unconfirmed reports of a major sale at $465/t cfr.

Potash

Amid global market turmoil, the US market remained quiet, though sub-$300/st fob Nola offers for open origin barges further pushed buyers to the sidelines.

While most market participants continued to peg barge prices at $300-305/st fob Nola, open origin prompt MOP was offered at $294-295/st fob Nola this week via a broker. No firm bids for the product could be confirmed, with some speculating the offers would be backed by residual Belaru-sian tonnage that has been treated with a consistent $5/st or more discount to other origins. Given the lack of confirmed business, the Nola barge assessment is unchanged at $300-305/st fob Nola this week.

Still, prices still face pressure and the perception of a weak market has turned off buyers. Corn Belt warehouse offers have slipped as low as $330/st fot in some areas, down by $5/st from the low end of last week’s assessment. Buying interest has been resoundingly curbed by ample supply from domestic and offshore sources. A Chilean cargo of white 60pc MOP is expected to arrive to Nola soon.

That increased competition in the US market was highlighted by Russian producer Uralkali in its first-half results, noting a “significant correction” of prices because of oversupply driven by new players entering the market. The producer also expects the K+S Legacy project coming online next year

China MoP imports ’000t KCl

0

150

300

450

600

750

900

Jul 14 Sep 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 Mar 15 May 15 Jul 15

— China Customs

Canada Russia Belarus Israel Jordan Chile Germany

will likely cause more pressure on prices in the US. The US imported 546,021t of MOP from Russia in the first half of 2015, a 66pc increase over the same time in 2014.

Uralkali projects US demand for 2015 to decline by 14-16pc year-over-year to 8.6mn-8.7mn tonnes. Global demand is forecast at 58mn tonnes, down from 63mn in 2014, in part because of the lower grain price environment.

In projects, BHP Billiton said its Jansen potash project in Saskatchewan was 46pc complete by the end of its financial year ended 30 June. The company’s potash business unit took an $184mn loss for the year and it expects to spend $350mn on the segment, which only includes the Jansen project, in the next year. BHP “will continue to review the appropriate pace and level of development activity and capital expenditure for the project.”

International potash highlights � Russian producer Uralkali warned the new 13pc VAT intro-

duction on Chinese fertilizer imports along with the devalu-ation of the country’s currency could negatively impact potash import volumes over the coming year. The producer said contract negotiations for 2016 shipments to China will likely face pressure for those reasons and also if deliveries continue during the negotiations as seen this year, which Uralkali said violated historical practice.

� Brazilian granular MOP prices have stabilized at $315-325/t cfr, but demand prospects have not improved. One large producer has sold about 100,000t of granular MOP to the market around $315/t cfr, which equates to a rough Nola barge price in the mid/high-$280s/st fob. The lack of buying interest has raised concerns that international producers will ship more product to the relatively stable US market, which continues to carry a modest premium to Brazil.




� Belarus’ BPC sold 10,000t of standard MOP at $330/t cfr and 15,000t of granular MOP at $345/t cfr to Vietnam for September shipment.

Global sulfur prices

hhh

125

150

175

200

5 Jun 14 30 Oct 14 2 Apr 15 27 Aug 15

China cfr $/t Vancouver fob $/tBrazil cfr $/t Tampa del $/lt

Sulfur and Sulfuric acid

SulfurDespite a few unplanned operational issues in the US im-pacting sulfur production, both buyers and suppliers report the market as balanced with no issues fulfilling or receiv-ing contractual volumes. In fact, some buyers report being offered spot volume, likely a sign of a weaker global market resulting in increased availability amid limited viable export prospects.

The standstill in the global market remains with a bearish sentiment in the global phosphate market contributing to the wait-and-see mode.

international sulfur highlights � In China, few tonnes were traded this week as uncertain-

ties over the VAT implementation and the largest import market’s economic status remain.

� In Brazil, there are reports of a buyer looking for 35,000t for late October arrival.

Sulfuric acidIn the import market, spot interest remains limited. Product continues to be offered of both European and Latin Ameri-can origin. Buyer price ideas are in the low-$60s/t cfr or below, but no fresh business is understood to have been con-cluded. Continued length in Chile and cargoes being offered ex-Peru and Santa Rosalia, Mexico, to non-Chilean markets is limiting potential for upward price movement, particularly for European suppliers.

In the domestic system, while some buyers have already concluded business for next year, others are beginning to prepare for negotiations. There are reports of some offers being made at flat prices compared with 2015 annual prices. Suppliers are said to be focused on maintaining supply posi-tions rather than seeking price increases.

international sulfuric acid highlights � In Brazil, Mosaic closed its 12,000t tender for acid on 21

August and offers in the mid-$70s/t cfr for NW Europe prod-uct rejected. It is unclear if Mosaic has awarded the tender.

� In Mexico, Fertinal is understood to be covered for the balance of the third quarter. The company will look to se-cure three additional cargoes for fourth quarter arrival.

fertilizer newS

united Suppliers, land O'lakes unit to mergeUnited Suppliers will merge with the crop inputs business of Land O'Lakes, with closing expected in October.

The merger will first combine the groups' seed and crop protection businesses under Land O'Lakes' existing WinField brand. A combination of the two fertilizer businesses will fol-low. WinField had $4.9bn in seed and crop protection sales in 2014. United Suppliers sold $2.6bn in crop protection, seed and fertilizer last year.

United Suppliers has a more established fertilizer presence

with seven owned and 17 leased terminal locations in the US. It sells more than 3mn st/yr of crop nutrients, accord-ing to the company. WinField also offers granular and liquid micronutrient fertilizers.

The merger "aims to create a single, relevant and competi-tive system of independent agricultural retailers."

Consolidation has been rampant throughout the fertilizer supply chain over recent weeks. Major mergers have oc-curred between nitrogen producers CF Industries and OCI, and CVR Partners and Rentech Nitrogen.




Top US cooperative and fertilizer wholesaler CHS also bought a $2.8bn stake in CF while receiving a substantial urea and UAN offtake deal. At the retail level, Iowa cooperatives Farmers Cooperative Company and West Central Cooperative said last week that they are exploring a potential merger.

Farm income to fall to nine-year low: USDATotal US farm income will drop to $58.3bn in 2015, down by 36pc from the 2014 estimate and marking the lowest level since 2006, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

If realized, the income figure would be a 53pc fall from the record $123.7bn mark seen in 2013. The 2015 income estimate released today is 21pc lower than the USDA's initial projection from February.

Lower corn, soybean and wheat prices have been drivers for the decline, with crop receipts expected to drop from 2014 for all three commodities. Corn prices have steadily moved downward since peaking in 2012, when the average farm price topped out at a record $6.89/bushel, because of successive bumper crops. Average farm prices for corn are projected at $3.65/bushel for 2015, which is the lowest since 2009.

The lower grain price environment has fueled concerns that growers will further cut back on fertilizer purchases as a belt-tightening measure. US farmers will spend an estimated $26.1bn on fertilizer in 2015, down by 7pc from 2014 and the lowest level since 2011, according to the USDA.

Lower fertilizer prices are part of the reason. Average prices for granular urea, ammonia, DAP and potash are all lower so far in 2015 when compared to 2014. Average granular urea prices are down by $45/st to $307/st fob Nola, DAP prices are down by $13/st to $428/st fob Nola and potash prices are down by $16/st to $337/st fob Nola. West Corn Belt ammonia prices have averaged $587/st fot in 2015, down by $8/st from 2014.

US rails assert readiness for winterRailroads told the Surface Transportation Board (STB) they are prepared to maintain fluidity through the Chicago hub during the winter season because of capital improvements and better communication between carriers.

"From an operations perspective, the Chicago Terminal is healthier today than it was a year ago, in our opinion," Canadian Pacific (CP) chief operating officer Keith Creel told

the board.

This is because the Class I railroads have better coordinated themselves to respond to congestion via the metrics and action plans established by the Chicago Transportation Coor-dination Office (CTCO), he said.

That anticipated readiness for wintertime comes amid expectations for a normal or even muted fall peak period. Railroad volumes typically increase throughout the North American network during the fall season because of the grain harvest and the push to ship merchandise and goods ahead of the winter holidays. But many of the railroads told the board that any increase is unlikely to be as pronounced as in recent years, when the US and Canada experienced record-breaking harvests.

"Looking forward, we do not expect to see a true ‘fall peak' in the coming months. Rather, in recent years, the tradi-tional peak has flattened out and spread over a longer time period," Norfolk Southern chief executive James Squires told STB.

The board queried the Class I railroads and several short lines in July as part of the annual process to determine how they will respond to the anticipated increase in volumes during the fall season and maintain fluidity through Chicago during wintertime.

In response to the board's Chicago question, the railroads described how capital improvements and efforts to improve communication helped them get through last winter without any major incidents clogging the network.

CP told the board that the operating conditions plan set forth by the CTCO require coordinated efforts between the Class I railroads. As a result, the Chicago terminal's re-sponse to operational challenges during the February 2015 snowstorm, which was considered one of the heaviest on record for Chicago, was "more effective as evidenced by the reasonably prompt return to normal operating condition" following the storm.

BNSF's has an action plan that is reviewed annually, with re-sources, equipment and procedures in place by 1 November. BNSF also works with the other lines to keep fluidity going, it told the board.

"To maintain Chicago fluidity, we are more aggressively leveraging at a much higher frequency the use of pre-ar-




ranged, alternate interchange gateways with our interchange partners," BNSF chief executive Carl Ice said. "As weather becomes a factor, we utilize alternative switching facilities and routing before adverse conditions significantly impact the network."

The railroads also described to the board their capital improvements. BNSF added 800 spots of parking capacity at three Chicago facilities, while CSX built a new interchange with BNSF at Smithboro, Illinois, to allow the two railroads to connect outside of Chicago to move energy products or merchandise trains.

Shortline railroad Genesee & Wyoming upgraded track infra-structure in and around Chicago to act as a pressure relief valve for Norfolk Southern's main route east from Chicago. Canadian National said its acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railroad in 2009 "has accomplished the goal we set out to achieve when we acquired the company: provide a fluid route for our traffic to go around Chicago."

Railroads said the current drop in traffic volumes for some commodities such as energy products might also aid in fluidi-ty. The fall peak will not be as dramatic as past years, partly because shippers are spreading their volumes throughout the year and partly because volumes of some commodities, such as coal, crude, automotive and fertilizer, are dropping from previous years. Other sectors, such as grain, forest products, chemicals and intermodal, might grow year to year.

"With the possible exception of grain traffic moving on the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad, Kyle Railroad and Toledo, Peoria & Western Railway, we do not expect any significant spikes in rail traffic associated with the fall peak," Genesee & Wyoming chief executive John Hellmann told STB. Hellmann said the company is in "active dialogue" with grain shippers and has purchased more than 1,500 covered hoppers, which will allow it to rely less on interchange part-ners for car supply.

BNSF's Ice said grain that producers put into storage because the strong US dollar was discouraging exports will have to move to make room for this year's harvest. But "the timing [of those moves] remains uncertain and will be based on multiple factors including the size of crop and price."

Ice also said BNSF has seen in recent weeks increased orders consistent with an anticipated large crop and supply push, and it will have shuttle capacity to accommodate the vol-umes, as well as pre-positioned cars.

STB wants to keep collecting rail dataThe Surface Transportation Board (STB) is seeking approval to continue collecting information from the Class I railroads regarding revenues and expenses, capital expenditures, revenue tons carried, employee information and traffic movements.

The board issued the proposal on 5 June and received no comments, and is now requesting approval from the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to continue collecting the information without change. Comments can be submitted to OMB until 16 September.

Comments are requested on whether the information col-lection is necessary for STB functions, how accurately STB calculated the burden on respondents, ways to improve the process and ways to minimize the reporting burden.

The first collection, a quarterly report of revenues, ex-penses and income from the seven Class I railroads, would continue without change under the proposal. This is a profit and loss statement that discloses railroad operating income on a quarterly and year-to-date basis for the current and prior years.

"The board uses the information in this report to ensure competitive, efficient and safe transportation through general oversight programs that monitor and forecast the fi-nancial and operating condition of railroads," the STB said. It is also used for regulation of railroad rate and service issues and rail restructuring proposals such as mergers, consolida-tions, acquisitions and abandonments.

The STB also wants to collect quarterly and cumulative balances of a carrier's assets and liabilities, gross capital expenditures and revenue tons carried. This information is used for the same purposes as the quarterly revenue and expense reports.

Also proposed is continuation of employee numbers, service hours and pay, divided by employee groups such as execu-tive, professional, maintenance and transportation. This information is collected from the seven Class I railroads and the Association of American Railroads (AAR). STB uses these numbers to forecast labor costs and efficiency measure-ments and evaluate proposed mergers and acquisitions.

The employee figures are also used by the Railroad Retire-ment Board, Bureau of Labor Statistics and AAR to monitor railroad operations. Some of it is published on the STB web




site, along with another information collection on employee numbers at mid-month.

Railroads would also have to continue providing reports on the number of cars loaded and terminated, used for STB's Uniform Rail Costing System that measures costs. This infor-mation is used in rail rate proceedings to calculate variable costs associated with providing a particular service, as well as evaluating financial transactions.

Finally, STB proposed to continue collecting carload waybills that break down loadings and total revenues by commodity, and can also be used to measure costs.

Comments on the proposal should be directed to the Office of Management and Budget.

Honeywell to pay for spills at HopewellHoneywell faces a $300,000 fine and more than $13mn in mandated improvements at its Hopewell, Virginia, plant for chemical releases into the James river.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has proposed a consent order outlining the penalties. The order will be up for public comment through 23 September with a final decision made by the State Water Control Board on 1 October.

Honeywell has discharged multiple chemicals, including nitric acid and caprolactam, into the James river because of a deteriorated wastewater system, the DEQ said. A water release in November 2014 killed more than 2,000 fish in a tributary of the river.

The order calls for Honeywell to upgrade Hopewell's sewer system, sumps and trenches at an estimated cost of more than $13mn.

"The facility has already completed a number of improve-ments covered by the proposed consent decree and is planning significant additional investments over the next five years to address the remaining items, in cooperation with the Virginia DEQ," Honeywell said.

The Hopewell plant is the largest US producer of ammonium sulfate fertilizer, a byproduct of caprolactam production, with an estimated capacity around 1.8mn st/yr.

Panama Canal project on track despite leakA $5.2bn project to expand the Panama Canal will be com-

pleted on schedule in April 2016 in spite of a leak in one of the new structures, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) said this week.

The ACP said "some water-filtration issues were detected in a specific area of the new Cocoli Locks, located on the Pacific side of the waterway" as part of operational testing.

"At this time and based on preliminary evaluations, the project's completion timeline as well as the expected date for commercial operation are not expected to change," the ACP said.

The main contractor on the project is the GUPC consortium, which is led by Spain s Sacyr.

"GUPC has the obligation to ensure the long-term perfor-mance on all aspects of the construction of the locks and to correct this issue. Moreover, GUPC's contract with the ACP dictates that the group is responsible for modifications and corrections," the ACP said.

The process of filling the new locks began in June.

"Technical personnel are addressing this temporary situation in the structure," GUPC said. "The precise aim of the test phases is to detect any situation that requires adjustment or reinforcement for the proper functioning of the project."

The expansion of the canal will allow the passage of larger vessels, including LNG tankers that up to now have not been able to transit the strategic waterway.

The project has been set back several times, mainly because of labor strife and a dispute between the ACP and GUPC related to cost overruns.

OCI posts 11pc fall in first-half revenueNetherlands-based fertilizer producer and trader OCI has reported first-half revenue of $1.15bn, down by 11pc year on year.

The company attributed the revenue fall primarily to lower sales from its OCI Beaumont plant in the US and its Egyptian business. The Beaumont facility was shut down from January to mid-April for a debottlenecking and turnaround project, while continued gas shortages in Egypt have hampered production.

In volume terms, first-half sales of OCI-produced fertilizers




Personnel news

Mosaic promotes Kimm to head India businessMosaic has promoted Kevin Kimm to India Country Manager, effective 1 September. Kimm will be in charge of managing the business operations of Mosaic subsidiary Mosaic India Private, which will pursue new phosphate and potash growth strategies in the country.

totaled 2.18mn t, which represents a 2.2pc decrease year on year. Sales were supported by a strong contribution from its Algerian business Sorfert, which partially offset lower volumes from its Egyptian plants and from its OCI Beaumont plant.

Ammonia sales were up by 12pc to 751,700t, urea sales were down by 5.6pc to 703,300t, calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN) sales rose by 1pc and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) sales were up by 3.4pc to 160,400t.

Overall, total fertilizer sales, including third-party trades, were down by 2.2pc to 3.63mn t.

Commenting on the outlook, OCI chief executive Nassef Sawiris said: "We expect a better second half, as OCI Beaumont will be able to produce at the increased capacity levels and we expect higher utilization rates in Egypt from the fourth quarter onwards upon arrival of a second LNG import vessel."

Charah completes first offshore deliveryCharah completed delivery of its first international shipment of SUL4R-PLUS fertilizer to a customer in the Dominican Re-public. The shipment was done via distributor JM Fertilizer.

“This material underwent the ultimate stress test as it trav-eled from Louisville to Tampa on rail, sat in a rail yard for five weeks awaiting a vessel and then traversed the Gulf of Mexico in five days under extremely humid conditions without clumping or dusting,” JM general manager Marcus Conrad said. “The quality of SUL4R-PLUS calcium sulfate re-ally exceeded our customer’s expectations.”

SUL4R-PLUS is a pelletized calcium sulfate fertilizer. It is available in the US at locations in Louisville, Kentucky; Farm-er City and Hoopeston, Illinois; Breckenridge and Middleton, Michigan; St Louis, Missouri; Caledonia, Ohio; and Prairie Du Chien and Lacrosse, Wisconsin.

Kimm joined in Mosaic in December 2011 and had served as senior director of marketing for North America since June 2012.

Wilson rejoins Keytrade boardFormer CF Industries chief executive Steve Wilson has rejoined Keytrade’s board of directors as chairman. Wilson had served on Keytrade’s board from 2007 to 2013. Wilson retired as the head of CF Industries on 1 January 2014, hav-ing served in that position since 2009.

new Yara Ceo to start next monthSvein Tore Holsether will take over as Yara’s chief execu-tive and president on 9 September. Acting chief executive Torgeir Kvidal will move back to his prior position as chief financial officer on the same date.

Holsether’s hiring was announced on 30 March.

K+S promotes executiveK+S has appointed Rainer Gerling to executive management, replacing Ralf Diekmann, who is retiring at the end of the year after 34 years with the company. Gerling, who currently heads the Werra potash plant in Germany, will be responsi-ble for production and technology for K+S. His term of office will run until the end of 2018.

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Argus FMB North American Fertilizer is published by Argus Media Ltd.

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Fertilizer Latino Americano 201627-29 January • Cartagena, Colombia

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New Argus FMB Micronutrients Report

This study aims to increase your awareness of micronutrients, their crucial role in agriculture and the enhanced profit opportunities they offer. Find out what micronutrients are, who supplies them and where they are produced. Email us at [email protected] for more information

www.argusmedia.com/fertilizer

Argus FMB Europe Fertilizer 2015 28-30 October | Barcelona

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