Deerfield, Illinois-based CF Industries says in a quarterly report released today that a $2.1 billion expansion of its nitrogen complex next to the Mississippi River in Ascension Parish is on schedule for completion in the third quarter of this year, but that costs associated with the project have risen.
Though CF Industries does not break down the precise cost increase on the Donaldsonville project, the quarterly report says the $3.8 billion the company planned to spend on the Louisiana project and a pair of new plants in Iowa has increased by 10% to $4.2 billion. The Iowa project was initially projected to cost $1.7 billion, and the company says in the report that the 10% increase is “primarily associated with Port Neal project” in Iowa.
Combined, the expansion of the Donaldsonville plant and the new ammonia and urea plants in Port Neal, Iowa, will increase the company’s nitrogen capacity by 25%, or by roughly 1.7 million nutrient tons.
CF Industries officials were joined by state and local officials to announce the Donaldsonville expansion project in November 2012. CF Industries operates seven nitrogen facilities in the United States and Canada, and the Donaldsonville site is the largest nitrogen complex in North America, the company says.
To secure the deal, the state is providing the company an incentive package that includes a $3 million Modernization Tax Credit, payable over five years; a performance-based $2 million Economic Development Loan Program award that is forgivable if the company meets payroll targets; and assistance from Louisiana Economic Development’s FastStart workforce development training program.
—Steve Sanoski
