Qatar Fertiliser Company’s (Qafco) overall profit is expected to grow 109 per cent to QR500 million ($138 million) this year, the second largest in the company’s history.

Qafco managing director Khalifa Al Sowaidi was quoted in a news report as saying the surge was due to peak prices prevailing since the beginning of the year. Urea was selling at $155 per tonne in September, while ammonia hovered around $210 per tonne.

Qafco's ammonia exports in 2002 were 405,900 tonnes, down 14.4 per cent from the previous year. A large proportion of the product was consumed in-house as feedstock to produce more urea. During the year, ammonia prices tumbled to an average of $110 per tonne from $135 per tonne in 2001. Its urea exports in 2002 were 1.76 million tones, up 9.5 per cent. Urea prices hovered around $106 per tonne, one dollar less than the 2001 average.

Sowaidi expects production will reach 1.4 million tonnes of ammonia and 1.7 million tonnes of urea by the end of 2003.

The main importer of Qafco’s ammonia this year was India, followed by the US and South Africa. Ammonia exports are expected to reach 420,000 tonnes by the end of 2003. The US was the main importer of urea from Qafco, followed by Thailand, Vietnam and Australia.

The high profits are coming when the company’s fourth phase is progressing towards completion in first-half 2004. Qafco-4 will have a daily capacity of 3,500 tonnes for ammonia and 2,000 tonnes for urea, bringing the company’s annual production to two million tonnes of ammonia and 2.8 million tonnes of urea. The German firm Krupp Uhde is building a unit each for ammonia and urea.

A urea formaldehyde plant, part of the Qafco-4 expansion, has just been built. The plant will make Qafco self-sufficient in that product. Urea formaldehyde is currently imported. The project was launched as a joint venture between Qafco and some private Qatari firms.

Qafco is conducting studies to revamp its phase 3 facilities to boost production.