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The first shipment of Russian fertilizer left the Netherlands’ port for Malawi, after the sanctions imposed on Russia by the western forces. Some 20,000 tons of NPK chemical fertilizers – made from nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium – were dispatched recently on board the MV Greenwich from the port of Terneuzen in the southwest of the Netherlands
The first shipment of Russian fertilizer left the Netherlands’ port for Malawi, after the sanctions imposed on Russia by the western forces. Some 20,000 tons of NPK chemical fertilizers – made from nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium – were dispatched recently on board the MV Greenwich from the port of Terneuzen in the southwest of the Netherlands. The fertilizer from Russia is important for combating the food crisis in Malawi.
Though agricultural products and fertilizers do not fall under the sanctions against Russia, shipowners shied away from lifting cargoes from the conflict zone fearing risks linked to the war in the Black Sea. The insurance companies refused to hedge the risks because of the likely disruptions in the traffic.
The United Nations have undertaken intense diplomatic efforts with the involved parties to ensure unimpeded exports of essential food and fertilizers from Ukraine and the Russian Federation. Some 260,000 tons of Russian fertilizer stored in ports in Europe must be exported in order to prevent a catastrophic crop loss in Africa.  The planting season in the continent is underway at this juncture.
The ship, chartered by the UN food security agency- the World Food Program (WFP)- left the Netherlands. The shipments were frozen because an individual from Russia was involved in the deal. The decision to release the shipment was taken after the UN guaranteed to ensure that it would be delivered to the agreed location in Malawi and that the Russian company and the sanctioned individual would gain nothing from the transaction.
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It may be recalled and as reported by www.trendsnafrica.com, two agreements were signed on July 22 in Istanbul that guaranteed unimpeded access to food and fertilizers from Ukraine and Russia. The cargo is expected to be unloaded at the central Mozambican port of Beira, before being transported overland to Malawi, a landlocked country in southern Africa. There will be further shipments of Russian fertilizers to the continent destined mostly for West Africa, where the UN agencies are keen to support the agricultural operations to beef up food production.
