OREANDA-NEWS. December 27, 2012. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has demanded to speed up the construction of a compound fertilizers plant in Belarus, reporters learnt from the presidential press service.

Alexander Lukashenko said: “I am told that markets allegedly overflow, prices are plummeting, and manufacturers are reducing their output. I don’t know about other manufacturers but ours is definitely reducing the output despite the sizeable reserves of the manufacturing capacity”.The head of state remarked he wanted the government to focus on the extraction of potash fertilizers in Belarus as well as the production of phosphorous and nitrogen fertilizers. “We have talked a lot about the production of compound fertilizers. Tell me about the progress. Selling fertilizers is good but it is even better to sell mixed fertilizers or compound ones, totally different prices and a different kind of business,” said the President. “We have been talking about it for a long time and the government once again has these plans on some dusty shelf,” said the president. Alexander Lukashenko said he wanted reports regarding the state of affairs in the construction of the enterprises to mix potash, nitrogen, and phosphorous fertilizers. The head of state was also interested in how Belarusian Potash Company was doing, in how well the production and sales of fertilizers were going.“I would like to learn about the state of affairs on the potash market, relations with our key Russian partners. I’d like to know whether an agreement has been reached and if it has, what you are going to do in the future,” said the President. Alexander Lukashenko stressed: “I would like to warn you against stereotyped statements that I‘ve heard a lot. I don’t need crystal-ball gazing with too much caution. I need concrete proposals.”

Previously the president stressed that in 2012 the Belarusian Potash Company should export at least as much potassium fertilizers as last year (4.698 million tonnes).

According to the National Statistics Committee, in January June 2012 Belarus reduced the exports of potash fertilizers 18.3% down to 1.994 million tones. The average price of Belarusian potash fertilizers grew 10.7% up to USD 742 per tonne.