Winnipeg | Reuters — Nutrien said on Wednesday it doesn’t think the proposed Black Sea shipping deal between Ukraine, Russia and the U.S. will significantly affect the North American or global fertilizer market this year.
“We do not expect the announced agreements will have a material impact on global supplies of fertilizers or grains in 2025,” said Nutrien spokesperson Shawn Churchill in a statement to Reuters.
“Russian fertilizer exports have largely adapted to the restrictions that were in place and are already operating near full capacity.”
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Nutrien, the world’s top potash producer, believes there is little potential for increased exports from Russia and Ukraine in the short term.
The three-country Black Sea deal has an unclear future. Russia has listed conditions required for it to comply with it, including lifting some restrictions on Russian banks, and much commercial traffic has already been occurring despite the military conflict.
Russian and Belarusian potash and other fertilizers have been struggling to get out into world markets since European Union nations imposed restrictions on exports from those countries; Ukrainian ports are on the other side of the war line; and Russian Black Sea exports have been sailing through a war zone. However, alternate routes have been developed, allowing fertilizer to reach many buyers.
— Additional reporting by Tristan Veyet in Gdansk
