US fertilizer producer Intrepid Potash's production fell in both the fourth quarter and full-year 2025 because of issues at multiple facilities, and it plans to keep its production guidance mostly steady throughout this year.
Intrepid produced 102,000 short tons (st) of potash in the fourth quarter at an average price of $387/st, down from 117,000st production in the same quarter a year earlier at an average price of $347/st.
Its full-year 2025 potash output was 280,000st, down by 5pc. The drop in output was driven by a delayed start-up in its HB facility in Carlsbad, New Mexico, after summer evaporation, coupled with Wendover, Utah, production remaining below historical levels. Its Moab, Utah, facility, which got above-average rainfall last fall, also had slightly lower mill feed grades.
Net potash sales for the fourth quarter were $29.5mn, up by 2pc from the same quarter a year earlier, while full-year sales were $139mn, up by 12pc, because of higher average prices.
Potash commitments are almost entirely full for the first quarter, reflecting stable demand this spring because of robust corn acreage, Intrepid said.
The company's 2026 production guidance for potash is 270,000-280,000st.
Intrepid expects Wendover and HB output to bounce back, pushing 2027 production guidance to 300,000-310,000st. It plans to build another new primary pond at Wendover that will expand its evaporative area and sustain potash output capacity at 75,000 st/yr, while also resulting in higher byproduct production, including lithium and magnesium that will contribute to its Wendover Lithium project. The pond project is expected to be commissioned in 2027 and contribute to potash and byproduct output in 2028.
Intrepid produced 71,000st of its specialty fertilizer Trio, up by 6pc from the same quarter a year earlier, while full-year 2025 output was 273,000st, a company record and also up by 9pc.
Earlier this year, Intrepid replaced a continuous miner at its East Mine and expects overall Trio production moving forward to continually increase because three of five miners at the location are new. Intrepid's 2026 Trio production guidance is 285,000-300,000st.
The producer also received an $8mn cash deposit for the potential sale of the majority of the Intrepid South assets in Lea County, New Mexico. Intrepid has entered a period of exclusivity with the potential buyer, and if negotiations are successful the transaction would close before July.
Intrepid posted a $400mn loss for the fourth quarter, compared with a loss of $207mn in the same period a year earlier, but posted an $11.2mn profit for all of 2025, swinging from a $212.8mn loss in 2024.
