In 2023, the volume of production of mineral fertilizers at the plants of the nitrogen holding Ostchem, which is part of Group DF, increased by 19.5% to reach the mark of 2.1 million tons. It is noted that the Cherkasy "Azot" plant produced 1.56 million tons of mineral fertilizers, which is marked by an increase of 39.63%, while "Rivneazot" produced 528 thousand tons, which represents a decrease of 10.81%.
The key types of fertilizers produced by Ostchem enterprises were urea, complex nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium fertilizers (KAS) and ammonium nitrate.
During the reporting year, the production volume of ammonium nitrate increased to 835.9 thousand tons (+60.5% compared to the previous year), KAS - to 572.7 thousand tons (+130%), and urea - to 447.1 thousand tons ( +145%). The volume of production of the traditionally exported VAS fertilizer (produced at the Rivneazot plant) has halved to 102,000 tons.
The head of Ostchem's nitrogen business, Serhiy Pavlyuchuk, emphasized that despite the difficult situation in the agricultural sector, plant shutdowns due to military actions and high gas prices, the company managed to start restoring production volumes. He also noted that the import of nitrogen fertilizers has increased many times, but Ostchem continues to work to restore the full capacity of its plants.
In 2023, the Ostchem holding doubled the production volumes of complex nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium fertilizers (KAS), which are considered the most promising type of fertilizers in Ukraine. KAS took second place in terms of production volumes, and its share in OSTCHEM's product portfolio was 27.3%.
In the strategic plans of the holding, the construction of new shops and factories is defined. These plans include investments in new, energy-efficient fertilizer production, as well as the launch of new products such as AdBlue, industrial gases and petrochemical products.
An important feature of the past year is the critically large volume of imports brought to Ukraine at dumping prices. Compared to 2022, the import of mineral fertilizers to Ukraine increased by 1.9 times, reaching 1.99 million tons. For example, the import of urea during the year increased by 3.7 times, up to 501 thousand tons.
The critical increase in the import of mineral fertilizers from countries that are friendly with Russia prevented Ukraine from reaching the level of production characteristic of the pre-war period. According to Eurostat data, the total volume of imports of nitrogen fertilizers to the EU in 2022-2023 increased by 34%, with approximately one third of these imports coming from Russia.
"A colossal flow of cheap Belarusian and Russian fertilizers enters Ukraine through two channels: the first is from countries friendly to the aggressor of the former USSR. The second new channel is the re-export of Belarusian and Russian fertilizers from EU countries. A significant part of these fertilizers, even in spite of the sanction, gets into Ukraine, slowly destroying the Ukrainian producer and the jobs of Ukrainians", - emphasizes Oleg Arestarkhov, head of corporate communications of Group DF.
He believes that behind this new trend lies not only Russia's desire to expand sales markets, but also a strategic plan to subjugate EU countries and Ukraine with dependence on their fertilizers.
Due to the inability to compete with cheap imports, many EU enterprises stop their activities, which leads to downtime, a similar situation is observed in Ukrainian chemical enterprises, such as OPZ and Sumikhimprom.
The USA and the EU have already developed measures to "reduce dependence" on fertilizers, grain and other products from Russia. Unfortunately, even with the current embargo on the import of Russian and Belarusian fertilizers to Ukraine, their supply continues. As a result, the Ukrainian market is flooded with cheap imports, and the country faces critical dumping. In 2023, no effective economic measures were taken to protect the Ukrainian market and the national producer, which is disappointing, noted Arestarkhov.
