India’s Phosphor- and Sulphur-based Fertilizer Production Reported at 18-Month low in April

Coronavirus lockdown has caused India’s fertilizer production to fall to the lowest level in 18 months in May. Plant shutdowns and a subsequent plunge in demand have caused a ripple effect to the entire supply chain. Phosphate fertilizers, particularly Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) fell by almost 38 per cent on y-o-y basis with just over 260 KT produced in April. Production of other fertilizers such as NPK, SSP etc. also fell by 27 and 6 per cent respectively. Despite fall in domestic output, imports have remained strong over March that constitute a major source of supply in the domestic market. This has kept the inventory level in check and so the prices. With demand remaining firm for these products at the onset of the kharif season, sales volume is anticipated to rise in the coming months. The Ministry of Agriculture predicts a strong monsoon and forecasts a robust production of kharif crops during the Q3 2021 and this has kept the sentiments of the fertilizer industry pumped up. As the lockdown norms have started to ease in the country, leading players such as National Fertilizers Limited, Coromandel International, Zuari Agro Chemicals, Tuticorin Alkali Chemicals have resumed operations at their plants, albeit at sub-optimal level and are likely to start operations at full throttle by the third quarter.