Premium
Prime minister Marcel Ciolacu expressed hope on Friday in Chetani that the only Romanian producer of fertilisers for agriculture, Azomures, will resume production as soon as possible, after the plant announced a few days ago that it was suspending production of ammonia and fertilisers, due to the lack of a clear strategic commitment from the authorities.
"I understand that they are also discussing with OMV and Romgaz, but as far as I know, the price of gas has fallen worldwide and especially in Europe. I hope they will start production as soon as possible," said Marcel Ciolacu.
Azomures announced last week that it was forced to suspend production of ammonia and fertilisers in December due to the lack of a clear strategic commitment from the authorities, which will have a negative impact on Romanian industry and agriculture.
"Azomures, a major Romanian fertiliser producer, has halted ammonia and fertiliser production for the month of December due to a set of policies and lack of action by the authorities, which negatively affects the large local industry. The negative impact on both the industry and agriculture in Romania raises concerns about the long-term prospects and the company calls on the authorities to support the Romanian fertiliser industry, which is globally recognised for its high quality," Azomures representatives said in a press release.
The Azomures CEO warned of the large differences in fertiliser prices in Romania compared to the rest of Europe and warned that farmers will pay extra for their inputs without a local producer to compete with imports.
In addition, he argued, the company must also shoulder the burden of carbon certificates imposed by the EU on European producers, unlike competitors outside the EU.
Moreover, the oversupply of subsidised gas in Romania, despite a significant surplus of natural gas traded by Transgaz, the latter is not made available to the market because large producers are not allowed to re-supply industrial consumers, such as Azomures.
