Hurricane Milton inundates US Tampa region with impact to fertilizer infrastructure unclear

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Roaring ashore as a Category 3 hurricane late 9 October and bringing fierce winds, heavy rainfall and significant inland storm surge Hurricane Milton inundated the Tamp, Florida area, which is a key hub of the US fertilizer industry.

In the aftermath of the storm there were market sources, based in this region, who were reporting being unharmed but that they were now facing considerable flooding, which was causing property damage in places and overall restricting public movement.

The section of Florida pounded by Milton is the location of not only production sites but also storage and logistic operations as well as corporate office facilities and the home to the numerous employees of the local fertilizer industry.

The Port of Tampa, which handles about 25% of domestic fertilizer exports, said on their website that recovery efforts have begun, and that staff is working with the US Army Corps of Engineers, US Coast Guard and other maritime partners to assess landside and seaside operations.

“Our port is currently without power. Some damage was observed to buildings but there has been no significant damage to docks, so far. The port is accessible through main gates, but please be advised there are road closures and flooding concerns in the surrounding roadways to our port,” the Port of Tampa announced.

“We are working with our fuel terminal operators to assess their facilities and learn when they will be able to return to service. Individual port tenants will make independent decisions on when to resume their operations.”

The extent of impacts to the fertilizer industry were not yet clear but Canadia fertilizer producer Nutrien, who only has the White Springs phosphate facility within Florida, said the company is still dealing with the impacts of the last storm but was able to avoid further issues from this hurricane.

“While Nutrien’s White Springs phosphate facility was not impacted by Hurricane Milton, we are continuing to assess the timeline for White Springs’ restart following Hurricane Helene.  Nutrien’s nitrogen facilities were not impacted by Hurricane Milton,” said a Nutrien spokesperson.

Fertilizer titan Mosaic, who not only has their headquarters within Tampa but also has numerous assets for production and logistics, said their immediate focus is on their workforce.

“As Hurricane Milton has now passed through central Florida, we are working to contact our employees and confirm their safety. When conditions allow, we’ll begin assessing the impacts on our operations,” said Mosaic.

There were concerns ahead of the storm over the potential environmental consequences of Milton as Florida has 25 stacks of slightly radioactive phosphogypsum waste that are a by-product of phosphate fertilizer production.

The fear that the winds and rains could release the material across the land and water resources that are nearby as has occurred in past hurricane events.

There was no immediate report of the conditions of the stacks as of late 10 October but ahead of the storm Florida environmental officials had said they were preparing and would have all resources available to oversee the regulated facilities and operations.

Sources said the areas that were more south of Tampa were apparently struck harder but there has not been full confirmation of the damages inflicted with a source saying it is a “different story down there”.

There were weather reports of over 18 inches of rain having been received in nearby St Petersburg, Florida.

The hurricane also generated several strong tornadoes as it approached which are being blamed for some of the physical damage to structures.

A market participants said that with it being less than 24 hours since landfall it was going to take some time for the fertilizer industry to assess the scale of the impacts from Milton, saying it is “too soon for that”.

Federal and state officials have not yet projected an estimated amount of damages as assessments were just barely getting underway.

It likely did great harm to the Florida citrus industry with orange groves bearing fruit and drawing close to their harvest period.

It is feared that it will be determined in the coming days that the storm’s intensity will result in a substantial decline in production this season, with others crops having also been exposed to harm like sugarcane and strawberries.