EuroChem to produce phosphate fertilizers in Brazil

EuroChem announced on Wednesday that it has obtained a license to produce phosphate fertilizers in Serra do Salitre, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.

The Russian-owned, Switzerland-based company has said that, once the facility is running at maximum capacity in March 2024, it will make one million tonnes of phosphate fertilizers per year in Brazil. This will account for 15% of national output.

EuroChem has invested $1bn in the project, which, in a first for the firm’s extra-European operations, will involve mining activities.
The company bought the complex from Yara in 2021 for $410mn. At the time of purchase it had not been finished.

The CEO of EuroChem South America, Gustavo Horbach, welcomed the development, commenting that: ‘The operating license is a fundamental step for the complex that will transform EuroChem into an important player in the production of fertilizers in Brazil and South America.’

He added that the new project will help the country to reduce its reliance on fertilizer imports and work towards food self-sufficiency.