SunSirs: The Sulfuric Acid and Phosphate Fertilizer Industries Were Implementing Multiple Measures to Regulate Supply and Stabilize Prices

On December 18th, the China Sulphuric Acid Industry Association, in conjunction with the China Phosphate Fertilizer Industry Association, held a special meeting focusing on ensuring the supply and stable prices of sulfuric acid and phosphate fertilizers. Several control measures were outlined to guarantee a stable supply and price of fertilizers before the spring planting season, thereby strengthening the foundation of agricultural input security for national food security.

Since the beginning of this year, tight global sulfur supplies have led to a sharp increase in prices. The price of imported sulfur has risen by over 230% this year, with the unit price briefly exceeding 4,100 RMB/ton. Data shows that as of December 11th, the average domestic sulfur price reached its highest point of the year, with the mainstream transaction price for solid sulfur averaging 3,936.88 RMB/ton, a year-on-year increase of 169.59%; and the mainstream transaction price for liquid sulfur averaging 3,992.75 RMB/ton, a year-on-year increase of 161.61%. The sharp increase in sulfur prices has directly led to a surge in domestic fertilizer production costs, affecting the stable operation of the fertilizer market and placing immense pressure on ensuring fertilizer supplies for winter storage and spring planting.  Maintaining supply and stabilizing prices in the industry is urgently needed.

In response to the current situation, the meeting clarified that, regarding export controls, sulfuric acid exporting companies must prioritize meeting domestic market demand, proactively reduce export volumes, and ensure that the price of any products that are still exported is not lower than the domestic selling price during the same period; regarding price controls, using the price on December 11th as a baseline, smelting acid producers should demonstrate a proactive and responsible attitude, refrain from arbitrarily raising prices, and ensure stable market operation; regarding pricing mechanisms, sulfur companies should focus on the domestic market, establish an independent and controllable pricing system, avoid significant price fluctuations following international market trends, and ensure the stable operation of the domestic market.

The meeting emphasized that the sulfuric acid and phosphate fertilizer industries must raise their political awareness, deeply understand the importance of food security and fertilizer supply guarantees, strengthen their sense of responsibility, and prioritize ensuring supply and stabilizing prices. At the same time, the China Sulfuric Acid Industry Association and the China Phosphate Fertilizer Industry Association must earnestly fulfill their industry self-regulatory responsibilities, strengthen supervision and monitoring of the industry, and fully implement measures to ensure supply and stabilize prices. They should also encourage sulfuric acid producers and phosphate fertilizer manufacturers to establish stable upstream and downstream supply and sales relationships through means such as signing long-term purchase and sales agreements.

Furthermore, to fundamentally alleviate the pressure on sulfur resource supply, the meeting also mentioned promoting the widespread adoption of phosphogypsum-based sulfuric acid production technology and providing policy support, coordinating relevant departments to study supporting measures. Public data shows that my country produces approximately 90 million tons of phosphogypsum annually, and one ton of phosphogypsum can produce 0.45 tons of sulfuric acid. If this technology can be applied on a large scale, it will effectively supplement the domestic sulfur resource supply. It is understood that, driven by leading enterprises such as Guizhou Phosphate Group and Yunnan Yuntianhua Co., Ltd., phosphogypsum-based sulfuric acid production technology has gradually matured and been implemented, with some projects having been operating stably for many years.

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