Common position of the Polish chemical industry on fertilizers

ORLEN Group, including Anwil S.A., took an active part in developing a common position aimed at increasing competitiveness in the fertilizer market, as well as strengthening the independence of both the national and EU fertilizer market, which is particularly important for the safety of agricultural production and food security throughout the European Union. A key demand of the Polish chemical industry is to implement tariffs of at least 30-40% as soon as possible, and to raise them gradually every six months. Natural gas is a key raw material needed for their production, and with the restriction of natural gas exports to the European Union, the Russian industry is using it to increase production and exports of other products, in this case, fertilizers. As a result, the prices of imported fertilizers from the eastern direction are deliberately undercut in order to significantly weaken the market and, consequently, the position of EU producers. As a result, the position of EU fertilizer producers is rapidly deteriorating. In the event of their collapse, Russia will probably decide to restrict exports or raise fertilizer prices, which will have a negative impact on EU food security. Imports of urea fertilizer into the European Union in the 2023/2024 season increased by almost 120% compared to the 2020/2021 season. In the event that Russian or Belarusian fertilizers were completely excluded from the EU market, farmers or end users would not be negatively affected, as the European Union would remain self-sufficient. Nitrogen fertilizer consumption in the EU accounted for about 47% of the production capacity of EU producers in 2022/2023, while in Poland alone it was about 43%. Therefore, ORLEN Group fully supports the position developed.