Key facts
- Mosaic is further reducing phosphate operations at North American and Brazilian facilities.
- The company cites curtailed raw material supply availability due to disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.
- Sulfur inventories are declining, contributing to constrained supply and affordability.
- Specific facilities in Florida and Louisiana will see reduced output.
- Brazilian operations are also facing additional curtailments and idling.
US fertilizer producer Mosaic announced it will further reduce its phosphate operations at select North American and Brazilian facilities due to curtailed raw material supply availability. The company attributes the reduced availability to traffic disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, which has impacted supply chains.
Mosaic stated that these actions are a temporary response to extraordinary market conditions and do not alter its long-term strategy. The company will reduce output at its Bartow, Florida, and Faustina, Louisiana, plants, with production also being reduced at its Riverview, Florida, and Uncle Sam, Louisiana, facilities. Earlier this year, the Faustina plant saw its operating rates reduced, and customers anticipate a full halt there. Bartow operations might continue at a reduced rate if the sulfur supply outlook improves.
In Brazil, additional temporary curtailments and idling of facilities are occurring. This follows earlier actions in April where the producer idled SSP production and mine activity, and in May, paused Brazilian phosphate rock production.
The announcement comes nearly a week after the US government decided to pause countervailing duties on Moroccan phosphate imports for eight months. This decision allows OCP, the Moroccan producer, to re-enter the US market after Mosaic's 2011 allegations of material injury to the US market.
In May, Mosaic had already withdrawn its 2026 phosphate production guidance of at least 7 million metric tonnes and initiated production curtailments in Louisiana, Florida, and Brazil. The reduction in phosphate operations is a direct result of limited raw material supply availability stemming from the ongoing conflict in the Mideast Gulf, which has compelled both domestic and global phosphate producers to reduce output.