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Augusta, Ga., Chemical Plant Will Have One-of-a-Kind Project After Expansion

Posted on: Tuesday, 1 November 2005, 21:00 CST

By Damon Cline, The Augusta Chronicle, Ga.

Nov. 2--Augusta's PCS Nitrogen will be manufacturing a one-of-a-kind project once it caps off its $20 million plant expansion next year.

The eastside chemical plant that produces ammonium nitrate fertilizers and urea, compounds found in fertilizers, will be producing an ultra-pure form of urea for use in the pharmaceutical industry once the new production line is complete in April 2006.

The urea pastille product that will come off the line is a higher-grade form of the urea prill that the plant has been producing since the late 1970s. The prills, which are used to manufacture a variety of products, contain too much formaldehyde for use in the drug industry.

"The (new product) will be about as pure as you can get," PCS Engineering Manager Charles Ellis said.

While the new production line will create only about seven new jobs at the 300-employee facility, the expansion will strengthen the long-term viability of the plant that was originally built in 1962.

"This is a significant investment that is being made," said Warren Stroman, general manager of the plant.

PCS Nitrogen, part of Canada-based Potash Corp., began developing the product more than three years ago and manufactured the first batch at a small pilot plant inside the sprawling 129-acre chemical complex.

The company is determining the patentability of the urea pastille product, which it says is the only kind in the world. The finished product will be a white, 4- millimeter sized half sphere. The urea prill product is a white, millimeter sphere.

The company is not releasing details about the new product, such as sales forecasts and production estimates. The Augusta plant currently produces about 420,000 tons of urea prill each year.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Augusta Chronicle, Ga.

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POT,

Source: The Augusta Chronicle

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