Petrobras launches tender to reactivate fertilizer plant

Brazilian federal oil giant Petrobras has launched a tender to contract services to reactivate its Araucária Nitrogenados fertilizer plant (Ansa) in Paraná state. 

The process calls for contracting inspection and maintenance services for storage and ball tanks, including boiler-making and complementary equipment. 

The tender documents are available on the state-run firm’s procurement website Petronect, under ID number 7004288720. 

Located adjacent to the Presidente Getúlio Vargas refinery (Repar), Ansa has a production capacity of 720,000t/y of urea and 475,000t/y of ammonia, as well as 450,000m3/y of automotive liquid reducing agent (Arla 32).

In June, Petrobras approved the restart of operations at the plant, which has been in hibernation since 2020, forecasting that activities will resume in the second half of 2024.  

Investment in fertilizer production has once again become part of Petrobras' portfolio, according to the company’s 2024-2028+ strategic plan.

Meanwhile, the federal oil giant is studying the technical and economic feasibility of resuming construction work on the nitrogen fertilizer unit III (UFN-III), in Mato Grosso do Sul state and is preparing the respective bidding process.  

Petrobras has two additional fertilizer plants, in Bahia and Sergipe states, currently leased to Unigel, with whom it signed a toll agreement (a gas processing service for the production of urea and ammonia) in late December 2023. 

At the beginning of July, Petrobras terminated the toll deal, claiming that the conditions of the agreement were not met within the established timeframe.  

The company said at the time that it was analyzing a “definitive, profitable and viable solution for supplying fertilizers to the Brazilian market.”