ThyssenKrupp wins EUR 1.0 bn fertiliser plant order in US

(FRANKFURT) - German heavy industry giant ThyssenKrupp said on Friday it had won a contract worth more than 1.0 billion euros ($1.3 billion) to build a number of fertiliser plants in the United States.

ThyssenKrupp said in a statement its plant construction arm ThyssenKrupp Uhde "received a major order for the design and construction of fertiliser plants in Port Neal, Iowa, and Donaldsonville, Louisiana."

The projects were ordered by CF Industries Holdings and their combined value "exceeds 1.0 billion euros," the statement said.

The Port Neal project will consist of an ammonia plant with daily capacity of 2,200 metric tons, a urea plant with 3,500 tones a day and a urea granulation plant also with 3,500 tons a day.

Port Neal is "a strategically important location in the midst of the mid west United States corn belt," ThyssenKrupp explained.

In addition to ammonia, urea and urea granulation plants at Donaldsonville, too, a nitric acid acid and urea ammonium nitrate plant will also be designed and built, the statement continued.

The expansion at the two facilities would "significantly reduce the dependence of the US on fertiliser imports from the Middle East and North Africa region," it said.

"This cooperation with CF Industries... will be another step towards improving the fertiliser plant infrastructure in the US; it also strengthens the market position of ThyssenKrupp's plant engineering business in North America," said Torsten Gessner, head of ThyssenKrupp North America.