Nitrogen
Overview
The ease of urea availability east and west of Suez has shaped the current trade flows of this key nitrogen fertilizer. Despite challenges posed by energy prices and military conflicts, key import markets such as India, Australia, and Latin America remain robust. But structural oversupply and the role of China as a swing exporter have led to price volatility as this fast-moving market seeks equilibrium, more so during seasonally high-demand periods.
Our extensive nitrogen coverage includes prilled and granular urea, UAN, ammonium nitrate, and ammonium sulphate. Argus has many decades of experience covering the nitrogen market and incorporates our multi-commodity market expertise in key areas including ammonia and natural gas to provide the full market narrative.
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Latest nitrogen news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global nitrogen industry.
Australia urea topdressing at risk on US-Iran war
Australia urea topdressing at risk on US-Iran war
Sydney, 26 March (Argus) — Australian growers face higher fertilizer and fuel costs, which are affecting their planting decisions as they approach winter crop planting. The country's urea imports could also be affected, depending on the war in Iran, which could weigh on topdressing during the growing season. The dynamic could adversely affect yields and quality. The effective closure of the strait of Hormuz has cut off Australia from its main urea supplier, leaving some farmers exposed as they head into winter crop planting in April-June. Australia sources almost two-thirds of its annual urea imports from the Mideast Gulf (see graph). There is enough urea in Australia to cover the winter crop's pre-seeding application, but more imports are needed for topdressing applications starting in June, multiple suppliers said. Topdressing supports yields and quality in crops and typically occurs in June and July for wheat and barley and August for canola. Crop volumes and, importantly, protein levels in wheat, could be reduced if supplies are tight and high fertilizer prices cause farmers to pull back from their typical topdressing. Domestic and international urea prices have surged since the war began, driven by tight supply and higher freight rates. Argus last assessed granular urea at A$1,250-1,340/t ($872-934/t) fca Geelong on 19 March, a 55pc increase from before the war (see graph). Some trades were heard above A$1,400/t fca Geelong this week. Uncertainty about when — and if — urea supply will return to normal, along with higher expected fertilizer and fuel costs, are being factored into planting decisions. Barley plantings are likely to rise in place of wheat because of its lower fertilizer requirements and strong prices. Canola plantings could also be dictated by the balance of expected returns from higher oil markets against higher fertilizer and fuel costs. Some growers in Western Australia are receiving advice from agronomists and fellow farmers to grow more pulses, like broad beans and lentils, because these use less fertilizer than grains like canola and wheat. In northern crop regions, which are already dry, some acres could be left for fallow. The last vessel carrying fertilizer to Australia through the strait of Hormuz departed on 23 February and is expected in WA on 26 March, vessel tracking data from Kpler show. There will likely be no vessels arriving in Australia from the Mideast Gulf in April because vessels travelling from the region typically take at least three weeks to arrive. Furthermore, granular urea cannot be easily replaced with alternative nitrogen fertilizers like urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) and ammonium sulphate (amsul). Supplies of UAN, which is mainly used in WA, could be restricted because the main supplier, China, stopped exports as of 13 March. Meanwhile, amsul has around half the nitrogen of urea which increases handling and application costs. By Susannah Cornford and Edward Dunlop Australia urea imports (t) Granular urea fca Geelong (A$/t) Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Sungrow, CRRC to provide tech for Kenya green NH3 plant
Sungrow, CRRC to provide tech for Kenya green NH3 plant
London, 24 March (Argus) — Chinese electrolyser manufacturers Sungrow Hydrogen and CRRC Zhuzhou have secured electrolyser supply contracts for the first phase of a geothermal-powered hydrogen and ammonia project in Olkaria, Kenya, developed by Chinese firm Kaishan Group. Kaishan signed a steam supply agreement with state utility KenGen in October 2025, under which KenGen will supply steam from existing geothermal wells for Kaishan to generate 165MW of electricity to power the electrolysers. Chinese firm Wuhuan Engineering is serving as engineering, procurement and construction contractor. Works on the site began in November 2025. Sungrow will supply 16 alkaline electrolysers rated at 1,000 Nm³/h each, while CRRC will provide eight units of the same rating, giving phase 1 a combined capacity of 24,000 Nm³/h, or around 120MW. This is sufficient to produce roughly 19,000 t/yr of hydrogen assuming continuous operation, which will be converted to the 100,000 t/yr of ammonia planned for phase 1. Kaishan plans to scale to 200,000 t/yr of ammonia at full build-out, with output processed into 480,000 t/yr of green fertilisers comprising 180,000 t/yr of urea and 300,000 t/yr of calcium ammonium nitrate. Kenya's government will offtake the fertiliser for distribution to local farmers to reduce import dependence. Total investment stands at around $800mn, with annual revenues projected at $220mn-250mn over a 25-year operating life, Kaishan said previously. Geothermal power offers a significant advantage for electrolytic hydrogen production, with capacity factors of around 90pc enabling near-continuous baseload operation without the intermittency or energy storage costs associated with solar and wind. Kenya's energy department estimates the country holds 10GW of geothermal potential, with only around 950MW of installed capacity to date. Chinese electrolyser makers have been increasing their equipment exports in recent months, supplying to projects in Europe, Middle East and Asia-Pacific. Sungrow delivered 160MW of alkaline electrolysers to Acme's green ammonia project in Oman , a 3MW containerised PEM system for Italy's MW-scale solar-to-hydrogen project , and a containerised alkaline system to a green hydrogen blending project in Brazil. By Chingis Idrissov Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Egypt’s urea availability, production solid
Egypt’s urea availability, production solid
London, 24 March (Argus) — Egyptian urea sales are still taking place for cargoes loading next month, while production rates remain unchanged as LNG deliveries continue. Egyptian urea production continues to run at full rates, despite tighter gas availability, producers told Argus . Israel's suspension of gas exports following the outbreak of war with Iran has removed the equivalent of about one LNG cargo every four days from Egypt's supply balance. Egypt secured three LNG cargoes for mid-March delivery earlier this month, before implementing broader energy-saving measures . The government appears focused on curbing domestic demand, rather than paying elevated spot prices, as it looks to preserve foreign currency reserves, contain inflation and maintain supply stability. Although urea plants have remained unaffected by the measures so far, producers acknowledge that the industry is not fully insulated from wider gas management policies, raising the risk that output could come under pressure if supply constraints persist. Sales ongoing Producers continue to conclude sales for urea loading in April, even as the end of March approaches, pointing to adequate availability. No producer deals for urea loading in May have emerged so far. Egyptian producers have reported selling about 260,000t of granular urea for January-April loading so far this year, against potential export availability of 1.4mn–1.6mn t over the same period. In addition to the reported sales, Argus estimates that a further 200,000–250,000t — or potentially more — of March-loading Egyptian urea has already been placed into India and the US. These volumes will help to narrow — but not eliminate — the sizeable gap between reported and potential exports, and may point to comparatively high producer inventories or quantities sent to the domestic market. Producers' sales reported this year include about 36,000t for January loading, 80,000t for February, around 84,000t for March and about 60,000t for April to date. Domestic–export sales split Egypt has 7.2mn–7.3mn t/yr of urea capacity and allocates a sizeable part of its output to the domestic market, leaving around 350,000–400,000 t/month for export. The country exported an average of about 4.5mn t/yr of urea in 2023–25. The domestic season typically peaks in June-September. Output fluctuates on both a monthly and annual basis, reflecting planned turnarounds, variations in gas availability — particularly during the summer peak power period — and intermittent disruptions to gas flows from Israel in recent years. By Dana Hjeij Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
India seeks ‘alternate sources’ of fertilizers
India seeks ‘alternate sources’ of fertilizers
Amsterdam, 23 March (Argus) — The Indian government confirmed that it has explored other potential origins for fertilizers but stressed that stocks are comfortable ahead of the summer Kharif season, with signs that domestic urea production can increase. The announcement follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's chairing of the country's security cabinet committee on 22 March to assess impacts in India considering the ongoing US-Iran war. The committee pointed to ‘adequate' fertilizer stock levels, which should ensure availability and food security. But the committee also discussed ‘alternate sources' of fertilizers for future consumption. Market participants have assumed in recent weeks that India has approached China to secure more of its urea needs for the coming months, but there has been no official confirmation of these reports. Gas first, urea later Urea is the most important and widely consumed fertilizer in India. Stocks levels had largely tracked those a year ago, at around 6.1mn t midway through this month . But domestic urea production had been cut sharply in the weeks after the outbreak of the war as energy costs surged and authorities limited the fertilizer sector's gas consumption to 70pc of its usual needs. This measure saw urea run rates slip to the equivalent of 1.7mn t for the month as of 18 March — 68pc of output in the same month last year. The Indian government then bought more gas on the spot market on 19 March, which should see urea production increase by around 9,000 t/d or so — up to about 2mn t/month equivalent — just under 80pc of usual output. But the measure has yet to alter the current state of play, with most recent provisional data indicating rates are still running at or slightly below 1.7mn t/month. The move to increase gas supply should take some pressure off the country's tight urea balance, when the most recently bought gas filters through to plants, but only slightly. India typically builds urea stocks by 2.5mn-3mn t or more in March-May during the off-season, before demand picks up for the peak summer months of June-August. But the drop in local output, though softened, still threatens the key restocking period before the summer. Market participants had expected a fresh urea import tender to emerge in the previous weeks to top up supplies, but the country's task force most recently signalled that a decision may likely come towards the end of this month. The US-Iran war has prompted a surge in urea prices, up by 50pc in three weeks, with 1mn t/month of urea exports from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain — equating to a fifth of global seaborne trade — cut off by the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz. By Harry Minihan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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