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Azomures could resume fertilizer production with European launch of support package for energy-intensive industries
The central Targu-Mures based Azomures company announced on Monday that it could resume the production of fertilizers for agriculture with the launch of the European package of support for energy-intensive industries, but the schedule for restarting the facilities also depends on availability of gas for the Romanian market.
"The European Commission has recently adopted an economic support package, aimed directly at farmers and energy-intensive companies such as the fertilizer industry. According to data presented in Brussels, energy-intensive fertilizer companies can benefit from support of up to 50 million euros to balance the costs of energy, natural gas for fertilizer producers. For Azomures, this aid would cover the difference between the purchase price of natural gas and the cost of producing fertilizers," Azomures showed in a press release.
"According to the schedule, half of the production facilities will be started in the first phase. The start-up of the other facilities is scheduled for May. The start-up schedule and a fair price for natural gas would allow the production of about 600,000 tonnes of fertilizer, to cover part of the fertilization needs of Romanian farmers in the autumn agricultural campaign, essential for next year's crops. With the resumption of the fertilizer production activity, Azomures reaffirms its support for the backing of the Romanian agriculture and of the national economy by maintaining in operation an extremely valuable economic chain in which tens of thousands of employees are involved," the press release of manufacturer Azomures further affirms.
In mid-December 2021, the largest producer of agricultural fertilizers in Romania, Azomures, announced the shutdown of facilities on the platform due to high energy prices. Azomures's annual production, under normal operating conditions, is 1.6 million tonnes of fertilizer, and approximately 75 percent of this production was intended for Romanian farms.