MOSCOW, January 24, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --
Andrey Guryev, President of the Russian Association of
Fertilizer Producers and CEO of PhosAgro, one of the world's
largest producers of phosphate-based fertilizers, took part in a
panel session called 'The Russian Economic Outlook', which took
place at Russia House as part of the business programme at the 49th
Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
'The Russian Economic Outlook' was the first of six plenary
sessions to be held at Russia House during the Forum. In addition
to PhosAgro's CEO, SUN Group Vice Chairman Shiv Vikram Khemka, IHS
Markit Vice Chairman Daniel Yergin
and the Deputy Editor of the Caixin Information Agency, Huang
Shang, also took part in the session. The participants discussed
issues related to expanding investments, structural changes and the
measures and steps necessary to stimulate Russian industrial
production and exports in the context of globalisation.
Opening the plenary session, Guryev noted that, despite
sanctions against Russia, domestic
companies continued to increase production and sales, while
improving their efficiency and productivity, saying:
"Russia's president and
government are creating favourable conditions and opportunities for
further development of business, and taking financial and
non-financial measures to support companies in the field of
high-tech exports to increase their investments and strengthen
their competitiveness in international markets. The Russian Export
Centre and Roseximbank are providing meaningful support for
pre-export financing and comprehensive export credit insurance.
Leading global investors and the RDIF, which also promotes the
interests of Russian companies abroad, are making direct
investments in both leading and promising Russian companies.
"Sanctions have undoubtedly limited access to 'cheap' financing.
Meanwhile, this situation has provided an additional impetus to
companies that are constantly working to improve their efficiency,
to rise to the challenge and to find new tools for growth. In just
the last five years, for example, our company has increased
production of mineral fertilizers and feed phosphates by more than
50 per cent. We invest at least USD 500
million every year, and our investment in development
doesn't fall below 50% of EBITDA, which is one of the highest rates
in Russian industry.
"One of the most dynamic Russian industries today is
agriculture, which produces the most environmentally friendly
products in the world, largely due to the use of Russian mineral
fertilizers, which stand out because they are of high quality and
contain almost no potentially-harmful contaminants. And it is
Russia's longest border, with
China, that the bulk of Russian
exports cross; Chinese companies have shown great interest in
Russian products. That's why significant investments are being made
in the development of agriculture in the Far East.
"What we are talking about today is not just growth, but growth
in the real sector, where the best available technologies,
digitisation, robotics and intelligent solutions are being
introduced. Here's an example from PhosAgro: our average annual
increase in labour productivity is roughly 25%, and we are to a
great extent indebted to these new technologies for improving our
efficiency and optimising our business processes. Therefore, we
already have such experience in Russia, and this needs to be expanded."
About PhosAgro
PhosAgro is one of the world's leading vertically integrated
phosphate-based fertilizer producers in terms of production volumes
of phosphate-based fertilizers and high-grade phosphate rock with a
P2O5 content of 39% and higher.
The Company is the largest phosphate-based fertilizer producer
in Europe (by total combined
capacity for DAP/MAP/NP/NPK/NPS), the largest producer of
high-grade phosphate rock with a P2O5 content
of 39%, a top-three producer of MAP/DAP globally, one of the
leading producers of feed phosphates (MCP) in Europe, and the only producer in Russia, and Russia's only producer of nepheline
concentrate (according to the RAFP).
PhosAgro's main products include phosphate rock, 39 grades of
fertilizers, feed phosphates, ammonia, and sodium tripolyphosphate,
which are used by customers in 100 countries spanning all of the
world's inhabited continents. The Company's priority markets
outside of Russia and the CIS are
Latin America, Europe and Asia.
PhosAgro's shares are traded on the Moscow Exchange, and Global
Depositary Receipts (GDRs) for shares trade on the London Stock
Exchange (under the ticker PHOR). Since 1
June 2016, the Company's GDRs have been included in the MSCI
Russia and MSCI Emerging Markets indexes.
More information about PhosAgro can be found on the website:
www.phosagro.ru.
SOURCE PhosAgro