Opinions & Interviews

Snopkov on export of potash fertilizers: volumes over prices

MINSK, 18 July (BelTA) – When selling potash fertilizers, Belarus prioritizes volumes over prices, First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Snopkov told reporters following the meeting hosted by Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko on 18 July, BelTA has learned.

According to Nikolai Snopkov, Belarus has found alternative ports to replace those that it had to leave due to the sanctions: “Today we can ship 12 million tonnes [of potash fertilizers] per year. Over the previous 10 years, we exported 10-12 million tonnes per year on average.”

It was noted at the meeting that the goal is not the volume, but the efficiency of transshipment of mineral fertilizers at Russian ports, the first deputy prime minister explained.

“The government laid out available options. The president set the task to choose the best option that will minimize logistics costs,” he said.

“We are aware of the situation on the market [the global market for potash fertilizers]. It is believed that this is not the bottom yet [the price has not reached the bottom]. Today, in principle, all companies stick to the ‘volumes above prices’ strategy. On the instructions of the president, we have been doing this since last year. In other words, we prioritize volumes over prices. After all, the production costs of Belaruskali allow us to do this. And we can keep this price for a long time. Yet, the issue of logistics is coming to the forefront. In order to effectively sell fertilizers, keep Belaruskali profitable, and, accordingly, ensure payments to the budget, we need optimal and efficient logistics. This is what we will continue to work on,” Nikolai Snopkov said.

According to the first deputy prime minister, in the near future the government will submit to the president the final version of its proposals to minimize transshipment costs in the mid-term.

“We have a product that is in demand in the world. We will ship it where transportation costs are the lowest. There may be variations. There are stable points of shipment, where we clearly understand volumes and costs, and variable points that compete with each other for our orders. We will take advantage of it in order to get the minimum transshipment price. This is the main task. We must minimize logistics and transshipment costs,” Nikolai Snopkov emphasized.

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