Belgium – Yara wants to transform its Tertre site in Wallonia. The company has plans to close the ammonia plant at the site and focus more on nitrate fertilizer products and industrial nitrogenous chemicals.
The company cites challenging market conditions and high energy and maintenance costs as reasons for the reorganization. As a result, the site has been under financial pressure for several years. Added to this are stricter environmental regulations and the need to accelerate decarbonization. This makes it increasingly difficult to keep ammonia production economically viable at the Tertre site. The company therefore feels compelled to intervene.
Yara will continue to produce 600 thousand tons of fertilizer and 250 thousand tons of industrial chemicals at the site. The company will now harness the ammonia it needs from other production sites.
Yara says it is considering collective layoffs for 115 employees. There would still be employment for some 200 people after the transformation.