The phosphate fertilizer industry serves as a vital foundational sector of the national economy, playing an irreplaceable supporting role in the strategic landscape of national food security, energy security, and environmental security. The 15th Five-Year Plan period marks a critical juncture for China's petrochemical industry to transition from size to strength.
According to China Chemical News, the Fertilizer Innovation and Development Forum held on November 4 during the 25th Phosphate and Compound Fertilizer Production and Sales Conference systematically summarized the achievements of the phosphate fertilizer industry during the 14th Five-Year Plan period and outlined the development strategy for the 15th Five-Year Plan period.
01 Phosphate Fertilizer Industry During the 14th Five-Year Plan Period:
Structural Optimization and Green Development
During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the phosphate fertilizer industry actively aligned with emerging trends, driving industrial transformation and green transition. Significant progress was achieved in structural adjustment and sustainable development.
Regarding the supply-demand landscape, to meet domestic demand for phosphate fertilizers and new phosphorus-based materials under new circumstances, the industry actively optimized capacity and restructured production. By the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period, phosphate fertilizer capacity, output, and apparent consumption are projected to increase by 4%, 7%, and 1% respectively compared to the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period. Capacity utilization is expected to reach approximately 80%, entering a rational economic operating range, with significantly improved industry prosperity. The supply-demand landscape will achieve steady improvement.
Regarding industrial layout, through continuous supply-side structural reforms, the “Three Phosphorus” special governance campaign, and measures like “closing, restructuring, relocating, and transforming” during the 13th and 14th Five-Year Plans, the industry's layout has been continuously optimized, with concentration steadily increasing.
The “Three Phosphorus” (i.e., phosphate mines, phosphate chemical plants, phosphogypsum storage facilities) campaign, development of new phosphorus-based materials, phosphorus-fluorine synergy, and comprehensive resource utilization have collectively driven continuous optimization of raw materials, products, and organizational structures in the phosphate fertilizer industry. Overall competitiveness and industrial synergies have significantly strengthened. On the raw material side, the structure of high-concentration phosphate fertilizer feedstocks has undergone notable changes, while low-concentration phosphate fertilizer production has diversified. On the product side, structural imbalances in phosphate fertilizers have further eased, with the scale of new high-efficiency fertilizers—such as polyphosphate ammonium for agricultural use, water-soluble monoammonium phosphate, potassium dihydrogen phosphate, and phosphoric acid urea—continuing to expand.
Innovation has become a vital force driving the industry's high-quality development. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, corporate innovation investments have steadily increased, not only advancing mineral processing technologies but also expanding the application scale of green processes. Particularly notable is the positive progress in fertilizer product innovation. The development of new, high-efficiency, and environmentally friendly phosphate fertilizer product systems has accelerated. High-efficiency phosphorus sources such as polyphosphoric acid ammonium, phosphoric acid urea, and slag acid-based ammonium magnesium phosphate have achieved large-scale production, significantly improving phosphorus utilization efficiency. Simultaneously, significant breakthroughs and advancements have been made in the harmless treatment and comprehensive utilization of phosphogypsum, laying a solid foundation for its resource-based utilization and safe, standardized storage. The continuous expansion of phosphogypsum utilization scenarios provides robust assurance for achieving the comprehensive utilization targets set for the 14th Five-Year Plan period.
Furthermore, the industry has achieved remarkable results in green development. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the industry actively implemented green development concepts. Non-hazardous treatment of phosphogypsum became widespread, the scale of comprehensive utilization steadily expanded, and the industry's comprehensive energy consumption continued to decline. Phosphate fertilizer enterprises above designated size have basically achieved zero wastewater discharge, with all exhaust gases meeting emission standards. Some enterprises have achieved ultra-low emissions, and several have been awarded the title of “Green Factory” by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
02 Confronting Resource and Environmental Challenges:
Addressing Structural Contradictions
"Since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the phosphate fertilizer industry has acted in accordance with market trends, actively promoting structural adjustments and green development. Under the new context of ‘ensuring supply and stabilizing prices, resource constraints, structural optimization, and green development,’ the industry has moved beyond the old cycle of scale expansion. It is now focused on building three key roles: ‘guarantor of food security, supplier of new energy materials, and practitioner of the circular economy,’ thereby reshaping its competitiveness. "While the phosphate fertilizer industry has achieved significant progress during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, it still faces challenges.
Domestically, resource and environmental pressures continue to mount. China holds only 5% of the world's phosphate reserves, with poor resource endowment. The contradiction between over-exploitation and insufficient reserves of high-quality phosphate resources has intensified, increasing pressure on securing high-quality resource supply. China's phosphorous chemical industry exhibits high concentration, with approximately 90% of production capacity clustered in the ecologically sensitive Yangtze River Economic Belt, creating immense pressure for green development. Concurrently, structural product mismatches persist, with significant gaps between phosphate fertilizer offerings and the differentiated demands of modern agriculture, while homogenized competition remains prominent. Structural adjustments require further deepening, as lagging upgrades in traditional industries lead to resource wastage. The issue of efficient resource utilization has not been fundamentally resolved, with targeted separation and controllable conversion technologies for phosphorus and associated elements yet to achieve comprehensive breakthroughs.
Internationally, geopolitical conflicts continue to disrupt global trade patterns, while heightened concerns over food security among nations have intensified. The global supply of fertilizer raw materials.
As an integrated internet platform providing benchmark prices, o On November 12, the benchmark price of diammonium phosphate from SunSirsf was 7033.33 RMB/ton, unchanged from the beginning of the month.
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