May 29 2007
Egyptian Agrium Nitrogen Products Co. SAE (EAgrium) has commissioned Uhde to build a turnkey fertiliser complex in Damietta, some 160 kilometres north-east of Cairo. EAgrium is investing some US$1.2 billion in the new fertiliser complex, which will comprise two 1,200 tonne-per-day ammonia plants and two urea plants with respective production capacities of 1,925 tpd. The plant complex will also include various offsite and related utility systems, product handling and storage facilities. Completion is scheduled for 2010.
The ammonia plants will be based on Uhde's proprietary ammonia process while the urea plants will use Netherlands-based Stamicarbon's process. All selected processes are particularly environment-friendly and comply with the stringent Egyptian and European standards.
"This is now our fifth contract in three years for a fertiliser complex in Egypt – an overall contract volume of over €1.6 billion. The new contract is the biggest ever single contract in Uhde's history and demonstrates once again the immense trust of the fertiliser industry in our ability to engineer and construct excellent large-scale fertiliser complexes," said Klaus Schneiders, Chairman of Uhde's Executive Board.
EAgrium is a joint venture company under the lead of the Canadian fertiliser producer Agrium, the Egyptian companies EChem, EGAS and GASCO as well as Saudi Arabian-based Arab Petroleum Investments Corp.