Govt has buffer stocks of over 800,000 tonnes of urea

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has buffer stocks of more than 800, 000 tonnes of urea, and fertiliser manufacturers have ruled out any shortage of the agricultural input during the Kharif season, which began this month. Executive Director of the Fertiliser Manufacturers of Pakistan Advisory Council (FMPAC), Brig Sher Shah Malik (retd), told Business Recorder that manufacturers currently hold buffer stocks of 829, 000 tonnes of urea to meet domestic demand. He said that only Fatima Fertilizer’s Sheikhupura plant is not receiving gas, while Fauji Fertilizer Company’s Bin Qasim plant is receiving 32 mmcfd of gas against a requirement of 60 mmcfd. The combined production loss of these two plants is around 100, 000 tonnes. READ MORE: Prices, stocks of fertilizers remain stable He added that, apart from this, all fertiliser plants are operating at full capacity. Head of Research JS Global Mohammed Waqas Ghani also said that the fertiliser manufacturers have surplus stocks and they’re mulling to export them if the government allows them to do so. “In a recent corporate briefing, the fertiliser companies shared the plans for urea export in the near future, ” he added. He said the production capacity of fertiliser manufacturers is 6. 3 million tonnes, which is equivalent to the local demand of urea. He said that the fertiliser plants required low bbtu gas to produce urea, and that’s why it didn’t put any extra burden on the gas consumption. He said that DAP prices increased by PKR 1000 per bag and normal urea per bag by PKR 200-400, mainly because of an increase in freight charges. He said the DAP bag now costs around PKR 15000 and the urea bag PKR 4500. According to market sources, the ban and curtailment of urea smuggling to Afghanistan improved the availability of urea in the country and kept the prices under check. Khalid Arian, President of the Pakistan Kissan Ittehad, said that the higher prices of DAP resulted in the shortfall of the wheat target by 3 million tonnes. “The production of wheat is likely to remain in the range of 27 million tonnes against the target of 30 million tonnes. “Small farmers could not afford PKR 15000 per bag of DAP, and it reduced the crops’ yield per acre. He said sowing of Kharif crops like rice, cotton, maize, and potatoes will start this month, and the government must ensure that the farmers get urea promptly and at a reasonable price. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

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