Bloomberg’s Ilena Peng and Elizabeth Elkin reported that “farm cooperative CHS Inc. and fertilizer producer OCP North America are proposing a $450 million phosphate fertilizer plant in Louisiana, bolstering domestic supplies as global conflicts have increasingly thwarted the flow of foreign crop nutrients.“
“The proposed plant in Waggaman, Louisiana, the first of its kind in the US in over four decades, would produce more than a million tons of phosphate-based fertilizer annually, according to a Wednesday press release,” Peng and Elkin reported. “The US produced about 5 million metric tons of finished phosphate fertilizers in 2024, according to Bloomberg Green Markets.”
“The announcement comes as global fertilizer markets have been roiled by geopolitical conflict, first in Russia and Ukraine and then in the Middle East,” Peng and Elkin reported. “Trade disruptions have elevated prices for the key crop nutrients and stoked concerns in the US about food security. The facility could reduce US dependency on imported phosphate fertilizers by more than 48%, according to the release.“
Agri-Pulse’s Steve Davies reported that “under the proposed joint venture, ‘the OCP Group will supply phosphoric acid to the facility, drawing on its global phosphate expertise and resources,’ according to the news release. ‘Finished fertilizer products will be distributed through both OCP North America and CHS, which serves cooperatives, retailers and farmers across the United States through its extensive wholesale and retail crop nutrients network.'”
“The location of the facility ‘helps ensure access to raw materials and the ability to transport products via the Mississippi River system,’ the release says,” according to Davies’ reporting.
Project Aligns with USDA Push to Reshore Fertilizer Manufacturing
AgWeb’s Margy Eckelkamp reported that “Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry all appeared at the announcement to cast the project as part of a broader push to reshore fertilizer manufacturing.”
“The partners hope to break ground in the first or second calendar quarter of 2027, and — if that timeline holds — to finish construction by the end of 2028 or the beginning of 2029,” Eckelkamp reported. “The project aligns with a federal priority to expand domestic fertilizer capacity, and the companies have applied for funding through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-term Domestic Supply, or FIELDS, program. But (CHS President and CEO Jay) Debertin was careful not to overstate where that stands.”
“‘USDA has not awarded anything yet,’ Debertin says. ‘They’re supportive of the project, but I don’t want to get in front of their analysis and their work to determine if we’re going to be eligible for an award,'” Eckelkamp reported. “He credited the administration and the state for smoothing the path in other ways. ‘When it comes to permitting [the administration] has been very, very helpful,’ he says, adding that Louisiana officials have looked for ‘ways to help the process to get the construction started.'”
Construction Will Take up to 24 Months, Once Approved
World-Grain’s Arvin Donley reported that “once approved, the project is expected to create approximately 60 permanent jobs in Jefferson Parish along with 500 construction jobs. Subject to project-related and funding approvals, construction is expected to take up to 24 months. The companies said an application has been submitted for potential funding through the US Department of Agriculture’s Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-term Domestic Supply program.”
