BRUSSELS, August 6. /TASS/. The crisis in the fertilizer market and remaining dependence of Europe on supplies from Russia jeopardize EU plans to strengthen its defense industry, the Euractiv web portal said.
Ammonia, the key feedstock for fertilizers, is also widely used in making explosives, the web portal said. Contraction of its production in Europe amid the 2022 energy crisis prompted European arms producers to refocus to its imports, particularly from Russia, which strengthens vulnerability of the branch.
"For nitric acid, we need fertilizer producers. Today, we rely heavily on Russian producers," Thierry Francou, CEO of France’s explosives producer Eurenco, told the news outlet. Russian fertilizers were coming to the EU without any trade barriers, causing the decline in local production, he noted.
The European Commission repeatedly announced plans to strengthen the defense sector but the issue of providing key components, such as ammonia and nitrogen, are often not taken into account.
It is impossible to implement Commission’s plans without the revival of the European chemical sector, Francou told Euractiv. "Without a chemical industry, we don’t have the capacity to make gunpowder," he added.