Fertilizers
Overview
The fertilizer industry has seen dramatic changes in market dynamics, with challenges posed by policy and regulatory changes, political instability, conflicts and new macroeconomic realities. The drive towards energy transition and ambitious zero-carbon goals has also opened up the industry to new entrants and new opportunities.
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CBAM suspension for ferts would be 'surprising': Yara
CBAM suspension for ferts would be 'surprising': Yara
London, 9 January (Argus) — Norwegian fertilizer giant Yara is not expecting a suspension of the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) for fertilizer products, despite recent confusion. The Commission is set to issue further guidance around provisions that could allow for the temporary suspension of the CBAM with retroactive application from 1 January 2026, according to a statement issued on 7 January , which created some confusion as to whether the carbon levy will remain in place. "To remove [CBAM] 7 days after implementing it… would undermine what it was meant to do" Yara said during the firm's Capital Markets Day presentation. Article 27a, included within proposals issued last month, stipulates a temporary suspension could be issued if CBAM causes "severe harm to the Union internal market due to serious and unforeseen circumstances related to the impact on the prices of goods". But the impact to prices of carbon intensive goods has always been expected, Yara pointed out. "It's been crystal clear that the carbon cost will be reflected in the cost of the product. The additional carbon cost is based on the commission's own methodology and default values, so this cannot be a surprise or an emergency, this is exactly what it was supposed to do", Yara chief executive Svein Tore Holsether said. A suspension on the grounds of increased cost would therefore be surprising, he indicated. CBAM has also been designed to coincide with the phasing out of free allowances for domestic industry emitters under the EU's emission trading system (ETS). "Suspending CBAM, while continuing the reduction of EU ETS allowances, will reduce the competitiveness of EU producers," Holsether said. "The intention of CBAM was to... mirror the cost that the European industry has been subject to for a number of years", he added. Yara has built a ‘quota bank' of 6mn EU ETS quotas through its emission efficiency investments which it can use against its own emissions or sell back into the market, equating to a value of around $500mn, according to the firm. Yara also plans to limit its CBAM exposure through investments or supply agreements with low-carbon ammonia production assets outside of Europe, such as the firms proposed partnership with Air Products But a suspension of CBAM would mean "we likely wouldn't have the return required on a US blue [low-carbon] project", Holsether said. Any weakening of CBAM instead "risks opening the door to carbon-intensive imports, eroding Europe's industrial base, and jeopardising food security". CBAM revenues should instead be used to create incentives to help farmers while making emitters pay, Holsether said. The Commission's 7 January statement also proposed a removal of duties on imports of ammonia and urea to help offset some of the additional costs associated with CBAM, and included details on a €48bn package of measures to aid farmers. But critics say the measures are not sufficient to support Europe's agri-food industry with additional costs, particularly while fertilizer prices are already 60pc higher than in 2020. The EU's CBAM took full effect on 1 January, imposing a carbon levy for certain goods imported into the EU. Ammonia and all fertilizers containing nitrogen from countries that are not already subject to the EU emissions trading system (ETS) or a system fully linked to the EU ETS are within scope. By Lizzy Lancaster Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Swedish SOP producer Cinis mulls liquidation
Swedish SOP producer Cinis mulls liquidation
London, 9 January (Argus) — Swedish water-soluble potassium sulphate (SOP) producer Cinis has announced it may be forced to begin company insolvency unless it can achieve a short-term financing deal with lenders. The fertilizer company says it is in a "strained financial situation" and currently in negotiations with financers to provide short-term credit. But liquidation in as little as two weeks remains the "most likely" outcome, a company press release said. Cinis, which produces SOP from pulp-and-paper and car battery industries, began output at its 100,000 t/yr Ornskoldsvik plant in Sweden in May 2024. It later delivered its first vessel of product to Dutch speciality fertilizer company Van Iperen in September that year. But Cinis has faced persistent challenges since then, including missing its production goals in 2024 because of production disruptions, and transportation issues. The company in April last year sought finance to boost production and fund improvement at its plant. It then in October ditched its output targets and asked for further funding, before pausing production in November. By Aidan Hall Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EU CBAM tweaks could permit fertilizer exemptions
EU CBAM tweaks could permit fertilizer exemptions
London, 7 January (Argus) — The EU will issue guidance in the first half of 2026 on new provisions that could allow for the temporary suspension of the bloc's carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) for specific sectors, including fertilizers. And the bloc gave more details on a €48bn package of measures to aid farmers. Draft reforms and tweaks to the CBAM were announced in December. Trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic said article 27a, proposed last month, could allow for its "temporary suspension" for certain goods "if market circumstances justify [it]". "It could also apply retroactively from 1 January 2026," Sefcovic said, urging EU states and the European Parliament to approve the changes as soon as possible. Sefcovic did not give a timeline but said EU agriculture ministers broadly approve, while also noting positive "echoes" in parliament. The commission will also propose temporarily removing standard import tariffs for urea, ammonia and possibly other fertilizers. The commission will also "mobilise" an additional €48.7bn, available as soon as 2028, to support farmers and rural communities and "may" increase this to €63.7bn through EU loans, a commission meeting note indicates. The note adds that "while fertilizer prices have stabilised, they remain around 60pc higher than in 2020". By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EU to suspend import tariffs on ammonia, urea
EU to suspend import tariffs on ammonia, urea
London, 7 January (Argus) — The EU is set to suspend standard import tariffs on ammonia and urea, in a move to offset extra costs imposed by the EU's carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM). Trade and economic security commissioner Maros Sefcovic said the EU will "swiftly" implement the suspension for the remaining most-favoured nation tariffs, and may include other fertilizers. Urea currently carries a 6.5pc standard tariff rate in the EU, applied to origins such as Russia, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Nigeria. The standard ammonia tariff is 5.5pc, and this applies to Middle Eastern origins as well as the US. Key sources for both products — such as Egypt and Algeria for urea, and Algeria and Trinidad and Tobago for ammonia — are already exempt from tariffs. The change comes after European agriculture ministers, including from France and Italy, raised alarms at a meeting with commissioners today about CBAM's financial impact on farmers. CBAM, which took effect on 1 January, imposes a carbon cost for certain goods imported into the EU, including ammonia and all fertilizers containing nitrogen from countries that are not already subject to the EU emissions trading system (ETS) or a system fully linked to the EU ETS. The EU previously suspended urea and ammonia import tariffs in 2022 for a period of six months. By Aidan Hall and Claudia Wlk Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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