Romanian fertilizer producer Azomureş, the country’s largest natural gas consumer, announced that it could resume operations in April once the European Commission extends financial aid of up to EUR 50 mln to energy-intensive fertilizer companies, Adevarul reported.

But the volume of production will depend on how much natural gas will be available on the Romanian market.

According to the calendar, at Azomureş the first phase consists in restarting half of the production facilities. The start of the other installations is scheduled for May.

The European Commission has recently adopted an economic support package aimed directly at farmers and energy-intensive companies, such as the fertilizer industry. The support is intended to balance the costs of energy, natural gas for fertilizer producers.

For Azomureş, this aid would cover the difference between the purchase price of natural gas and the cost of production of fertilizers.

The European Commission is concerned about the availability of fertilizers for European farmers, as fertilizers from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine are missing from the market.

In mid-December 2021, the largest producer of agricultural fertilizers in Romania, Azomureş, announced the shutdown of installations on the platform due to the high price of energy.

The annual production of Azomureş, under normal operating conditions, is 1.6 mln tonnes of fertilizer, and about 75% of this production is delivered to Romanian farms. 

(Photo: Azomures Facebook Page)

andrei@romania-insider.com