Ahead of building first US plant, Sweden Cinis Fertilizer strikes sodium sulphate deal

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Swedish producer Cinis Fertilizer has signed a 10-year agreement with Ascend Elements, a leading American manufacturer of engineered battery materials, regarding the sourcing of sodium sulphate.

The company said this agreement along with a collaboration with potash producer K+S Minerals lay the foundation for Cinis to establish a fertilizer production plant in Hopkinsville, Kentucky.

This will be their third plant with the two other plants located in Sweden with Cinis saying becoming established in the US is part of their larger plan to reach a production level of 1.5m tons of potassium sulphate coming from six facilities by the end of the year 2030.

The terms of the agreement call for up to 240,000 short tons per year of sodium sulphate starting in 2026 with Cinis having entered into a letter of intent with K+S regarding the off take of their finished product.

They have also arranged to purchase potassium chloride from K+S facilities in Saskatchewan to supply the US fertilizer plant, which is scheduled to start in 2026, with the capacity to produce up to 300,000 tonnes of potassium sulphate yearly.

“In the past year, we have experienced massive international interest in our environ­mentally friendly fertilizer, where circularity and fossil-free production are key. For manufacturers of batteries, it is important that the entire production chain meets high requirements for resource efficiency and environmental friendliness,” Jakob Liedberg, Cinis Fertilizer CEO said.

“The agreement with Ascend Elements in addition with the letter of intent with K+S, which includes the purchase of our full plant production capacity, gives us the confidence we need to establish Cinis Fertilizer on the American market.”