October 14 International Fertilizer & Agriculture News

Liquid Ammonia STS Transfer Supports Hormuz Strait Exports

Data from ship-tracking firm Kpler show a batch of transit liquid ammonia was loaded in the Gulf of Oman on Sunday. A mid-sized ammonia carrier, acquired by Saudi shipping company Bahri, appeared in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz. The vessel most likely loaded about 25,500 tonnes of Saudi liquid ammonia for export. According to Kpler, after completing a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer with the vessel "Searambler," the Saudi ammonia cargo is expected to arrive at India's Paradip Port by October 20. The cargo will mainly supply contracted Indian customers. Since March this year, Indian customers have been largely unable to receive Saudi liquid ammonia. Saudi producers exported over 1 million tonnes of liquid ammonia to India in 2025; this year to date, that volume is only 146,000 tonnes. This is the first attempt by a non-Iranian vessel to load liquid ammonia during the current conflict. Liquid ammonia is toxic and carries explosion risk, and with vessels in this critical waterway under persistent attack, most ship owners had previously deemed the operation too risky.

Iran issued fresh warnings this week: it will take action against vessels in the waterway that switch off their navigation and ship-identification systems and are identified as hostile targets. Meanwhile, Yemen's Houthi forces stepped up strikes on Saudi infrastructure over the weekend, hitting King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. But this STS offshore transfer is not without precedent — the LNG, LPG and crude oil markets have all adopted the same model. Despite the security risks, the market is relying on ship-to-ship transfers to move exports through the Strait of Hormuz.

Vietnam's Vinachem Plans MOP Project in Laos

Vietnam's state-owned chemical fertilizer producer, the Vietnam National Chemical Group (Vinachem), and Vietnam Energy and Mining Investment JSC will jointly build a 500,000 tonnes/year muriate of potash (MOP) project in Laos, the company said today. Total investment is about US$500 million. The two firms said they aim to complete approvals of the feasibility study and environmental impact assessment this month, then proceed with plant construction and achieve commercial production in 2028. Data from Global Trade Tracker (GTT) show Vietnam's MOP imports rose to 1.4 million tonnes in 2025 from 1.2 million tonnes in 2024. Over these two years, Lao-origin supply accounted for about one-quarter of Vietnam's total MOP imports. Vinachem said its subsidiaries consume about 190,000 tonnes of MOP annually. Once operational, the project will help Vinachem achieve partial self-sufficiency in the potash needed for fertilizer production.