Atome strikes 10-year supply deal with Yara for Paraguayan low-carbon fertiliser project
Atome Energy, the Aim-quoted developer of low-carbon fertiliser, has signed a definitive 10-year offtake agreement with Yara International, securing a buyer for the entirety of output from its flagship Villeta project in Paraguay.
Under the deal, the Norwegian fertiliser group will purchase all 260,000 tonnes a year of Atome’s planned calcium ammonium nitrate production, which will be manufactured using renewable hydropower. The agreement, which includes an option to extend beyond the initial term, gives Atome access to Yara’s established sales and distribution networks in South America.
The Villeta facility, with an estimated capital cost of $630mn, is expected to begin construction in late 2025. The deal with Yara marks the final commercial milestone before Atome reaches a final investment decision later this year, the company said.
Yara, headquartered in Oslo, is the world’s largest producer and distributor of crop nutrition products and has been expanding its portfolio of low-carbon fertilisers as the sector comes under pressure to cut emissions. Fertiliser use and production account for more greenhouse gas emissions than the shipping and aviation industries combined, according to UN data.
Atome said its project would help reduce reliance on imported fossil-fuel-based fertilisers in South America, much of which currently comes from Russia and China. The Villeta plant will be the first industrial-scale facility in the region to produce low-carbon fertiliser without the support of subsidies or grants, the company added.
The project is strategically located within the Mercosur trade bloc, giving it direct access to the Argentinian and Brazilian markets — two of the world’s largest buyers of fertiliser.