The largest farmer-owner co-operative in the United States is planning to construct a $1.4 billion nitrogen fertilizer plant in North Dakota.
CHS Inc. announced Wednesday the plant will be built in Spiritwood, N.D. and will use the state’s abundant supplies of natural gas to produce anhydrous ammonia, urea and UAN liquid fertilizer.
The nitrogen fertilizer will be sold to producers in the Dakotas, Minnesota, Montana and Canada.
Jack Dalrymple, North Dakota’s governor, endorsed the project as a boon for farmers in the region.
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“This potential for this type of project is great news for our farmers and for the entire state of North Dakota,” said Dalrymple, who participated in the CHS announcement in Bismarck.
“The CHS plant will help us further reduce the flaring of natural gas in western North Dakota and it will provide our farmers with a reliable supply of locally produced fertilizers in place of imports from foreign countries.”
The North Dakota Farmers Union (NDFU) supports the decision to move forward on the project, as the organization has advocated for a nitrogen fertilizer plant in the state.
“We are pleased that our organization’s initial market analysis and feasibility study for building a plant of this scope has allowed us to work closely with CHS, leading to today’s announcement,” said Woody Barth, NDFU president.
So far, CHS has selected a 200 acre site near Spiritwood and will soon begin design and feasibility studies for the plant. The co-operative has committed $10 million to the feasibility phase of the project.
If construction proceeds as expected, CHS hopes to open the plant by 2016. Construction cost, based on CHS estimates, will be $1.1 to $1.4 billion.
CHS, which is based in Minnesota and owned by American farmers and co-operatives, operates about 70 farm service centres in 15 states. It sells ag inputs, fuel and farm supplies and provides grain marketing services to 50,000 U.S. producers.
