Nutrien Ag Solutions unveils 50,000 tonne liquid fertiliser storage facility

Nutrien Ag Solutions has unveiled its mega fertiliser storage facility at Coogee Chemicals’ Kwinana site in a bid to shore up supply for WA grain growers.

The company has more than quadrupled its current liquid storage facility in WA from 10,000 tonnes and adds to its existing granular storage capacity of 200,000 tonnes.

The 50,000-tonne liquid fertiliser storage facility includes two 25,000-tonne tanks at Coogee Chemicals’ headquarters on Kwinana Beach Road.

The opening last Wednesday came nine months after the two companies revealed they had inked a long-term bulk storage and services agreement in December.

Nutrien Ag Solutions will use the facility to store its imported urea ammonium nitrate as it angles for more market share in WA’s competitive fertiliser market.

Nutrien has flagged the expansion as a way to help growers as global supply chains come under pressure by making sure growers have access to a vital crop input.

Nutrien Ag Solutions managing director Rob Clayton said the investment reflected the business’ confidence in the future growth of the industry in Australia.

“This increase in the supply and consistency of Bulk N in WA is about setting farmers up for success,” he said.

“Agriculture has proved to be one of the shining lights during the recent supply chain pressures and COVID restrictions during the past two years. There is enormous confidence in the agriculture sector, and we believe this is is only going to continue to climb.

“Nutrien Ag Solutions is well-positioned to support our farmers through growth.”

Nutrien Ag Solutions west region manager Andrew Duperouzel said the company was focused on making investments to safeguard growers in the face of global uncertainty.

“Grain production is expected to reach about 20 million tonnes this year, one of the best years in recent times,” he said.

“This year will be a testament to the innovation of WA farmers — the early adoption of technology, sustainable practices, use of data and the application of high-quality advice from farm services has helped our growers produce a strong crop this winter, which has seen a big demand for fertiliser.”

Nutrien is one of several companies hoping to cash in on WA’s fertiliser boom.

Oil and gas junior Strike Energy is working on an ambitious $2.3 billion proposal to build a giant urea plant at Narngulu, near Geraldton.

WA-based Kalium Lakes this month won the race to become Australia’s first potash producer with its first high-grade batch of fertiliser at Beyondie, near Newman.

In October, CBH Fertiliser revealed it would build a $50 million fertiliser storage facility at Kwinana to store 128,000 tonnes of fertiliser. CBH’s facility would span 6ha and store 80,0000 tonnes of granular fertiliser and 48,000 tonnes of liquid.