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Fertiliser imports: Russia and Belarus shunned due to sanctions  

19 Mar 2022

  • $ 30 m tender will see pre-bidding process this week
  • Price fluctuations due to demand rise and conflict may affect tender
By Skandha Gunasekara The Government will not be importing fertiliser from Russia and Belarus due to international sanctions imposed on the two countries consequent to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and will look for alternative suppliers, The Sunday Morning learns. The National Fertiliser Secretariat told The Sunday Morning that this week’s bidding process for the 38,000 Metric Tonne (MT) tender for fertiliser was likely to indicate which alternative sources may be viable. “At the moment we don’t know who the supplier will be, as anyone producing KCl (potassium chloride) can bid. There are such producers all over the world including in Canada and some other countries. We cannot take from Belarus and Russia at the moment. We will have to see during the pre-bid meeting who will be applying for bids,” National Fertiliser Secretariat Director Mahesh Gammanpila told The Sunday Morning. He noted that an estimated $ 30 million would be needed to bring down the necessary KCl. “We cannot say the exact value as it depends on the world market, but we are assuming it will be roughly $ 800 and we will need to import 38,000 MT. Once the tender process is over the necessary dollars will be needed. An estimated $ 30 million will be needed.” He said that tenders were floated earlier this month to select a supplier to import the KCl fertiliser. “A tender has been floated for the KCl fertiliser import and the pre-bid meeting will be held on 21 March. We will know who the bidders are and the exact costs only on that day. At the pre-bid meeting bidders can use the opportunity to ask clarifications from the Technical Evaluation Committee and the Procurement Committee about the conditions of contracts.”  


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