NEW DELHI: India is in no hurry to sign fresh contracts for import of fertilisers like DAP and potash as the country has sufficient quantity to meet demand till July this year, a senior government official said.
The country imports more than half of its demand of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and the entire requirement of Muriate of Potash (MoP) annually.
"There is sufficient supply of fertilisers for the kharif season of 2012-13. We are in no hurry to contract more fertilisers as supply is enough in the pipeline," the official said.
The kharif season runs from July to September. During December 2011, the stocks of urea in the country stood at 35 lakh tonnes and that of DAP, MoP and complex (NPK) fertilisers at 10 lakh tonnes, 5 lakh tonnes and 10 lakh tonnes, respectively, the official added.
"The availability of fertilisers during December last year was almost a million tonnes more than that in December 2010," the official noted.
Sharing similar views, P S Gahlaut, the managing director of Indian Potash Ltd (IPL), one of the largest importer of fertilisers in the country, said India will have adequate quantity of DAP and MoP fertilisers for the kharif season.
"India will have a large inventory on April 1, 2012 and with the contracts for January-March 2012 also reaching the country between April to June, I do not see the need for the country to sign any new contracts before July," Gahlaut said.
According to market statistics, there will be around 4 million tonnes of DAP and MoP with the industry by April 1 this year besides some inventory with the traders, he added.
Leading global fertiliser consultant, Fertecon, however, suggests the delay in signing of new contracts could be due to the depreciation of the rupee against the US dollar, which is making imports costlier.
"In any event, it now looks as if Indian contracts for the fertiliser year 2012-13 will be subjected to delays again and may perhaps not be determined until June-July", it said.
"...Importers, meanwhile, continue to cite the present unprecedented depreciation of the Indian rupee, as this is making imports more expensive. Economists are warning that the value of the rupee is set to fall further," Fertecon had said in a report.
Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com