OSLO, NORWAY: Yara International ASA said that it will invest approximately BRL 1 billion ($275 million) in expanding and modernizing its Rio Grande plant, in southern Brazil, a key region in the country’s growing agricultural industry. Set for completion in 2020, the investment will create one of the biggest and most modern fertilizer sites in the Americas.
The expansion project will double the site’s current 800,000 tonne annual fertilizer production and blending capacity.
The scope includes new warehouses, new acidulation and granulation lines, fully automated blending and bagging equipment for small (50 kg) and big (1 tonne) bags, a boiler for steam production, a wastewater treatment plant and rest areas for truck drivers.
“This expansion represents another step in our Brazil growth strategy, further establishing our position in Brazil as a long-term industry player, committed to developing and investing in Brazilian agribusiness,” said Svein Tore Holsether, president and CEO, Yara.
“The project is possible thanks to the acquisition of Bunge Fertilizantes in 2013, creating further consolidation synergies through optimization, automation and de-bottlenecking of the combined assets,” said Svein.
The facility is expected to create over a thousand direct and a further three to four thousand indirect employment opportunities, boosting the region’s economy.
The investment follows approximately $1.5 billion of expansions and acquisitions carried out by Yara in Brazil in recent years, including the Bunge (2013) and Galvani (2014) acquisitions and the recent construction of the country’s most modern blending and bagging terminals in Sumare and Porto Alegre.
© Worldofchemicals News
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