The executive said Nutrien was ready to increase potash production if it sees sustained supply problems in Russia and Belarus, the world’s second- and third-largest potash producing countries after Canada.
Nutrien has said it expects to sell as much as 14.3 million tonnes of potash this year, its most ever, and Seitz said the company plans to run its plants “flat out” as it braces for exports interruptions and plant closures from Russia.
Global spot prices for potash hit a 13-year high of around $650 per tonne in December, after a spike in crop prices and a demand recovery this year. The record price for the fertilizer was set in 2008 when supply deals were signed at around $800 per tonne.
The invasion of Ukraine is also jeopardizing Russia’s nitrogen fertilizer exports and triggering sharp price increases of oil and natural gas, a key input in nitrogen production.
Europe relies on Russia for about a quarter of its oil and…
