Bloomberg: Russian gas reaches Europe again in the form of fertilizer
A major nitrogen fertilizer producer in Hungary said pipeline flows of Russian natural gas to Europe may have declined, but it still arrived in Europe as a nitrogen fertilizer input.
Zoltan Bige, Chief Strategy Officer of Nitrogenmuvek, Hungary’s only nitrogen fertilizer producer, said, “The resumption of fertilizer imports from Russia and other non-EU countries threatens the businesses of local producers”.
“What doesn’t come to Europe as gas comes instead in the form of urea,” Bige added.
“It’s unfortunate for the industry that Europe has moved from importing a low value-added product, which is natural gas, to a high value-added product, which is fertilizer, as Gas is the main feedstock for nitrogen fertilizers,” Bige said.
At the height of Europe’s energy crisis last year, many domestic producers suspended fertilizer production after reduced flows of Russian gas after its invasion of Ukraine drove up production costs.
