Mosaic may expand Louisiana plant

The Mosaic Company has entered the initial phases of expanding its existing Faustina site in St. James Parish in Louisiana, the company announced on Friday. The company has started its initial engineering and design work on what could be a $700 million ammonia production plant.

A final decision on whether to make the investment needed is projected to be made by mid-2013, after the engineering design and cost evaluation of the project are completed. Once approved, construction to expand the plant would start in 2014 and would likely begin operating in early 2016.

“Mosaic said that they will bring back more ammonia production from overseas,” said Gov. Bobby Jindal of the proposed project, according to The Advocate.

The expansion would triple the current ammonia production capacity at Faustina. New production is expected for sister sites in Florida that manufacture fertilizer products.

“As the world’s leading producer of phosphate and potash crop nutrients, Mosaic’s mission is to help the world grow the food it needs,” said Richard Krakowski, vice president-supply chain. “Our Louisiana operations are vital to that mission, and ammonia is an essential part of our manufacturing processes. We’re eager to conduct the engineering and design evaluation that will lead to a final investment decision next year.”

Louisiana is offering Mosaic a Modernization Tax Credit of $3 million, which would be claimed over a five-year period.

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