Hurricane Milton To Disrupt Phosphate Production

Argus Media’s Taylor Zavala reported that “the US phosphate market anticipates Hurricane Milton’s Florida landfall … will cause further disruptions to regional production as the Tampa area continues to recover from Hurricane Helene.”

Bloomberg’s Mary Hui and Brian K Sullivan reported Thursday morning that “Hurricane Milton is moving off the coast of eastern Florida into the Atlantic after making landfall near Tampa with tree-snapping winds and heavy rain, causing widespread flooding and knocking out power for millions.”

“Milton came ashore near Siesta Key as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday evening and is now packing winds of 85 miles (140 kilometers) per hour, the US National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory. Damaging winds are lashing central Florida and flash flood emergencies are in effect, as Milton tracks over the Atlantic ocean,” Hui and Sullivan reported. “The hurricane shredded the roof of Tropicana Field, a domed stadium in St. Petersburg and the home of Major League Baseball team, Tampa Bay Rays, ABC reported. The storm has also knocked out power for more than 3 million homes and businesses in Florida, according to PowerOutage.us.”

“Phosphate traders expect the storm will only further tighten the market as major fertilizer producers work to overcome production losses and power outages endured during Hurricane Helene on 26 September,” Zavala reported. “One phosphate trader called the incoming storm ‘devastating,’ considering it will exacerbate existing fourth quarter scarcity from ongoing outages at Nutrien’s White Springs and Mosaic’s Riverview facilities.”

“Mosaic’s Riverview facility in Tampa experienced water intrusion from storm surge during Hurricane Helene but was expected to be back to full production sometime this week, according to the company. The producer also expected some late third quarter shipments to be pushed into the fourth quarter because of the Tampa port closure,” Zavala reported. “Fellow fertilizer producer Nutrien’s White Springs phosphate facility is located north of Tampa and was still assessing damage following Hurricane Helene as of today, the company said. White Springs has annual production capacity of 2mn t/year. Nutrien said it is also monitoring Hurricane Milton’s path and has emergency safety measures in place for the storm.”

While disruptions to the plants themselves will likely be problematic, Progressive Farmer’s Russ Quinn reported that “even if the phosphorus production facilities can withstand the storm, workers have homes and families to care for. ‘How much can homesteads withstand and how long will it take for them to clean up and get back on their feet before they can even consider getting back to work?’ (Josh) Linville, (Stone X vice president of fertilizer), asked.”

“This situation would be bad anytime of the year, but it is especially bad about 30 days before the start of fall application season, he stressed,” Quinn reported. “NOLA DAP is already one of the least expensive DAP values in the world with demand looking better with higher yields and somewhat higher grain prices giving farmers some optimism. Many farmers will apply phosphorus in the days after harvest is completed this fall.”

“‘So, supplies could be hurt, and demand is rising three to four weeks before the start of application,’ Linville wrote,” according to Quinn’s reporting.

Concerns Growing Over Production Waste Facilities

E&E News’ Marc Heller reported Tuesday that “the approach of Hurricane Milton is rekindling worries that Florida’s piles of waste from the fertilizer industry could be breached by the incoming storm.”

“Florida has more than two dozen facilities for storing phosphorus waste, several of which are in the Tampa region and have sparked conflict with environmental groups. So far, the so-called gypsum stacks have dodged damage from hurricanes, including most recently Helene,” Heller reported. “‘Most of the 24 phosphogypsum stacks in Florida are in central Florida, smack dab in the cone of uncertainty at the moment. That’s very concerning,’ said Justin Tramble, executive director of Tampa Bay Waterkeeper, an environmental group.”

“The stacks, which can be 500 feet tall and are typically covered with ponds of wastewater, contain mildly radioactive chemicals,” Heller reported.  “They’re regulated by EPA as well as state environmental agencies, through provisions first written in the 1980s.”