2019 highlights

Emissions into the atmosphere
GRI: 103
Success

PhosAgro’s emissions management system seeks to comply with national air pollution regulations, ensure air quality in sanitary protection areas near production sites, and upgrade the Company’s capacities using the best available techniques.

PhosAgro’s strategic goal is to achieve a 5% reduction in pollutant emissions per tonne by 2025.

To deliver on this target, in November 2019, the Board of Directors’ Sustainable Development Committee approved a list of initiatives designed to contribue to achieving the objective. In particular, the Company:

  1. implements environmental programmes under the nationwide Clean Air initiative in line with the Comprehensive Plan to Reduce Pollutant Emissions in Cherepovets approved by the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia on 28 December 2018;
    1. upgrades the SK-600/3 sulphuric acid facility to decrease sulphur dioxide emissions by 0.892 kt, with RUB 315,177,000 spent in 2019 and RUB 2,710,719,000 for the entire project implementation period;
    2. deploys new tailing gas pre-heating equipment for the UKL-7 plants to reduce atmospheric emissions by 0.105 kt, with RUB 9,417,000 spent in 2019.
  2. upgrades equipment at the Volkhov branch to reduce pollutant emissions, including absorption system upgrade at the second site, and introduction of absorption acidification systems at three sites of the mineral fertilizer production unit.
  3. takes measures to prevent dust emissions from tailings at the Kirovsk branch.
Pollutant emissions, kg/tTonnes of finished and semi-finished products
2017 2018 2019
1.131 1.048 0.888
Emissions of NOx, SOx and other major pollutants, t
GRI: 305-7

In 2019, gross pollutant emissions, including NOx and SO2, were down across the Group. The reduction was due to the measures implemented by the Company and the favourable weather conditions.

Greenhouse gases
GRI: 103, 305-1, 305-4

The Group is committed to tackling greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.

GHG emissionsGreenhouse gas emissions are given in СО2 equivalent. The calculation includes the following list of gases: СО2, СН4, NO2., kg/tTonnes of finished and semi-finished products
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
125.34 141.47 145.95 157.97 143.27

PhosAgro’s strategic goal in this area was approved by the Sustainable Development Committee of the Board of Directors in November 2019 and envisioned achieving the level of 142 kg of CO2 equivalent per tonne of finished and semi-finished products by 2025.

To deliver on this objective the Company is implementing a number of projects

  • elaborates a low carbon transition strategy and plan;
  • develops an action plan for the low carbon transition strategy;
  • defines GHG emission targets;
  • conducts climate change scenario analysis;
  • works out a plan for engagement with members of the value chain and the engagement assessment framework. The deadline is set for Q3 2020.

Greenhouse gas emissions

Apatit
Total GHG emissions, t
GHG emissions per unit of output, kg/tTonnes of finished and semi-finished products
Waste
GRI: 103

Waste management is an integral part of PhosAgro’s comprehensive environmental management system.

Our strategic goal to 2025 is to increase the share of recycled and decontaminated hazard class 1–4 waste to 40%.

To achieve the targets, the Company is implementing a number of initiatives approved in November 2019 by the Board of Directors' Sustainable Development Committee:

  1. upgrading the aluminium fluoride plant at the Cherepovets site to ensure the use of all the fluorine extracted as part of phosphate rock processing; reduce lime consumption in treating effluents; and decrease the amount of solid waste generation with RUB 9,761,000 spent in 2019;
  2. at the Kirovsk branch, we have launched waste disposal and decontamination facilities, including the UDT-1 thermal treatment facility and the thermal waste decontamination unit with high-temperature burning of exhaust gases; the project will contribute to elimination of waste disposal sites and make possible the recycling of all kinds of waste (tires, railway sleepers, and timber) belonging to PhosAgro and other companies in the region.
Share of recycled and decontaminated hazard class 1–4 waste, %
2017 2018 2019
26.3 26.8 34.5

We place major emphasis on safe operation of tailings, which are special hydraulic structures and equipment for storage and disposal of mineral processing wastes.

Based on the safety requirements for hydraulic structures approved by the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Oversight (Rostekhnadzor) in 2018, the Company’s tailings have the highest safety level. This means that they fully meet the design requirements and applicable rules and regulations. The state of structures and foundations corresponds to the requirements. The tailings are operated in accordance with existing industrial safety laws and regulations as well as instructions of supervisory bodies.

Waste generation, kg/tTonnes of finished and semi-finished products
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Total 4.566 3.456 3.578 3.653 3.152 3.225 3.466
Kirovsk branch 10.845 8.333 8.881 8.950 7.615 8.042 8.710
Balakovo branch 0.828 0.869 0.725 0.881 0.898 0.884 0.894
Volkhov branch 0.005 0.005 0.004 0.004 0.004 0.005 0.002
Cherepovets 0.454 0.462 0.470 0.483 0.472 0.428 0.421
Waste generation (hazard class 1–4), kg/tTonnes of finished and semi-finished products
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018  2019
Total 159.467 169.423 6.970 10.978 8.871 5.779 6.113
Kirovsk branch 3.684 2.991 0.896 0.458 0.308 0.632 0.635
Balakovo branch 828.231 868.426 24.579 29.498 28.951 22.239 19.495
Volkhov branch 1.382 1.631 0.881 0.616 0.925 0.913 2.187
Cherepovets 10.205 7.791 4.763 12.203 7.810 3.441 5.168
Waste, t
Reused Landfilled Third party
Third-party recycled Third-party decontaminated Third-party landfilled Third-party stored Third-party processed
Kirovsk branch of Apatit
2017 29,633,656.5 50,252,148.4 21,526.6 340.1 2,606.7 – –
2018 21,274,068 67,117,451 16,933.2 9.8 5,279.8 – –
2019 19,656,977 81,635,022.6 15,665.9 165.9 4,197.1
Balakovo branch of Apatit
2017 22,312 4,780,492.2 11,649.7 1.7 222.3 – –
2018 6,099 4,898,612.7 9,879.1 26.4 372 – 1,381.5
2019 16,580.3 5,302,285.7 4,720.5 4.5 257 – 2,906.1
Volkhov branch of Apatit
2017 – – 1,490.1 0.3 652.9 – –
2018 – – 115.5 0.4 603.7 1,998.9
2019 – – 43.9 0.3 1,345 – –
Apatit
2017 3,013,524.1 2,778,641.4 18,469.3 457.2 134.4 – –
2018 2,970,411.4 2,767,144.9 12,984.1 39.6 – 0.7 –
2019 3,195,192.6 2,856,356.6 17,266.3 100.6 125.7 – –
Total
2017 32,669,492.5 57,811,281.9 53,135.8 799.3 3,616.3 – –
2018 24,250,578.5 74,783,208.5 39,911.9 76.2 6,255.5 0.7 3,380.5
2019 22,868,749.9 89,793,664.9 37,696.5 271.4 5,924.8 0 2,906.1

Production growth has resulted in increased waste disposal.

GRI: 306-2
Waste generation by hazard class, t
Total I class II class III class IV class V class
Kirovsk branch of Apatit
2018 88,413,741.67 0.24 0 237.414 6,710.49 88,406,793.53
2019 101,313,438.09 0.494 9.039 334.52 7,047.985 101,306,046.05
Balakovo branch of Apatit
2018 4,909,840.64 2.074 0.048 38.027 123,472.40 4,786,328.10
2019 5,321,693.716 2.091 0.555 8.453 116,008.999 5,205,673.618
Volkhov branch of Apatit
2018 2,718.53 0.425 0 0 594.9 2,123.20
2019 1,389.20 0.3 0 0 1,345 43.90
Apatit in Cherepovets
2018 5,798,521.75 4.741 1.252 981.185 45,581.40 5,751,953.20
2019 6,020,722.293 4.751 1.17 1,595.652 72,323.84 5,946,796.88
Total
2018 99,124,822.59 7.48 1.3 1,256.626 176,359.19 98,947,198.03
2019 112,657,243.30 7.636 10.764 1,938.625 196,725.824 112,458,560.4
Water

Our waste water management approach is focused on maximum reuse of water through closed-loop water recycling system and proper treatment of effluents discharged into water bodies in addition to continuous monitoring of water bodies in the regions of operation and aquatic life recovery.

The Company’s strategic goal is to reduce waste water discharge per tonne of output by 20% compared to 2018.

To deliver on our targets, PhosAgro implements a variety of programmes approved by the Board of Directors› Sustainable Development Committee in November 2019, including:

  1. the Optimisation of Water Use by Apatit in Cherepovets During Production Upgrade in 2020–2025 – a targeted programme with RUB 176 m in funding for phase 1 only;
  2. the Discharge Reduction and Effluent Quality Improvement at the Kirovsk Branch of Apatit in 2019–2020 – a targeted programme which includes construction of a chemicals dosing facility to treat effluents from the ANBP-2 tailings.
Waste water discharge, m3/tExcluding supplies to third parties
2017 2018 2019
7.476 6.039 4.684
GRI: 303-4
Pollutant discharge, kg/tTonnes of finished and semi-finished products
2016 2017 2018 2019
1.3 1.0 0.8 0.614
Treated effluents (reused in the production cycle), mln m3
2018 2019
TOTAL 221.98 238.87
Kirovsk branch of Apatit 202.83 219.52
Balakovo branch of Apatit 9.36 9.52
Volkhov branch of Apatit 1.62 1.07
Apatit (Cherepovets site) 8.16 8.77
GRI: 103, 303-1
Water consumption, ths m3
2018 2019
TOTAL 34,510 33,763
Kirovsk branch of Apatit 9,864 5,563
Balakovo branch of Apatit 7,632 8,256
Volkhov branch of Apatit 1,936 2,168
Apatit (Cherepovets site) 15,078 17,776
GRI: 303-5
Success

PhosAgro supports aquatic life recovery.

Number of fish released into water bodies in the regions of operation as part of environmental protection initiatives in 2019
Cherepovets site Balakovo branch of Apatit Kirovsk branch of Apatit
Aquatic life species Juvenile carp Juvenile carp Juvenile silver carp Sterlet yearling Juvenile Atlantic salmon (2 yrs)
Quantity 6,500 30,000 25,000 84,353 2,130
Water body Gorky Reservoir Volgograd Reservoir Sukhona River Umba River
GRI: 303-2
Water discharge in 2019, mln m3
Kirovsk branch of Apatit Balakovo branch of Apatit Volkhov branch of Apatit Apatit Total
Waste water discharge 137.4 0 0 14.8 152.2
Discharged without treatment (% of total water discharge) 2.6 0 0 0 2
Total water withdrawal by source, ths m3
Indicator Kirovsk Branch of Apatit Apatit (Cherepovets) Balakovo Branch of Apatit Volkhov Branch of Apatit Total
2018 2019 2018 2019 2018 2019 2018 2019 2018 2019
Surface water
Total water withdrawal from surface sources, including: 144,920 111,106 22,110 24,291 7,201 7,619 2,069 2,163 176,300 145,179
process water 28,741 27,596 19,387 21,161 7,201 7,619 1,861 1,940 57,191 58,315
drinking water (internal use) 0 0 935 885 0 0 0 0 935 885
drinking water (for supplies to third parties) 0 0 498 466 0 0 0 0 498 466
mining water 111,213 79,933 0 0 0 0 0 0 111,213 79,933
drainage water 4,965 3,577 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,965 3,577
rainwater 0 0 1,290 1,779 0 0 208 223 1,498 2,002
Ground water
Water withdrawal from ground-water sources: 2,196 1964 0 0 742 879 0 0 2,938 2,842
Water received from third party suppliers
Total water received from third party suppliers, including: 37,129 32,334 7,661 9,572 0 0 138 177 44,927 42,082
process water received from suppliers 18,367 19,016 7,125 8,530 0 0 0 0 25,491 27,546
water from municipal supply (internal use) 9,263 7,824 457 560 0 0 138 177 9,857 8,560
water from municipal supply (for supplies to third parties) 0 0 23 34 0 0 0 0 23 34
waste water from other waste-water discharge systems 9,500 5,494 56 448 0 0 0 0 9,556 5,943
TOTAL 184,246 145,404 29,770 33,863 7,944 8,498 2,206 2,339 224,166 190,104
GRI: 303-3
Total water discharge by source and by site, ths m3
Indicator Kirovsk Branch of Apatit Apatit (Cherepovets) Balakovo Branch of Apatit Volkhov Branch of Apatit Total
2018 2019 2018 2019 2018 2019 2018 2019 2018 2019
Water discharge into surface waters
Total water discharge into surface waters: 171,787 137,386 13,694 14,837 0 0 141 0 185,621 152,223
mining water 111,213 79933 0 0 0 0 0 0 111,213 79,933
drainage water 4,965 3577 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,965 3,577
waste water from other waste-water discharge systems 9,500 5,494 0 0 0 0 0 0 9,500 5,494
Supplies to third parties
Total water supplies to third parties: 2,595 2,455 999 1,251 312 242 129 171 4,035 4,118
waste water to the public water discharge system (after use) 2,595 2,455 422 302 312 242 129 171 3,458 3,170
waste water to the public water discharge system (unused) 0 0 56 448 0 0 0 0 56 448
water supplies to third parties from surface sources 0 0 498 466 0 0 0 0 498 466
water supplies to third parties from municipal sources 0 0 23 34 0 0 0 0 23 34
TOTAL 174,382 139,841 14,692 16,087 312 242 270 171 189,656 156,341
GRI: 303-4
Energy efficiency
GRI: 103, 302-1, 306-1

To compensate for the energy intensive nature of our business, at PhosAgro we are constantly seeking ways to improve productivity and use resources more efficiently. Crucial to this effort is gaining a thorough understanding of how we consume energy.

To this end, the Company focuses its work in the following key areas:

  • increasing energy efficiency;
  • expanding our own power-generation capacities;
  • recycling waste to generate heat by using exhaust gases from gas turbines to produce steam;
  • optimising energy use from different sources.
PhosAgro energy consumption in 2019
Electricity, ths kWh Natural gas, mln m Liquefied natural gas, t Heat energy, ths Gcal Fuel, ths tons Diesel, ths tons Total cost, RUB bln
Total consumption 3,735 2,704 3,135 11,331 154 47
own generation 1,500 10,924
purchased 2,235 407
Consumption per tonne of output 0.115 0.083 0.096 0.349 0.005 0.001
Cost, RUB bln 10.286 12.058 0.091 10.74 2.54 2.100 37.810
GRI: 302-1, 302-3
PhosAgro energy consumption in 2018The heat and electricity data provided in the Company’s 2018 annual report may differ from those disclosed in this table because the Company harmonised calculation methods for power consumption across all its production assets in the reporting year.
Electricity, ths kWh Natural gas, mln m Liquefied natural gas, t Heat energy, ths Gcal Fuel, ths tons Diesel, ths tons Total cost, RUB bln
Total consumption 3,651 2,667 2,705 10,968 148 40
Own generation 1,485 10,580
Purchased 2,166 388
Consumption per tonne of output 0.119 0.087 0.088 0.357 0.005 0.001
Cost, RUB bln 8.919 11.470 0.076 10.00 2.20 1.769 34.436
Reduction in electricity consumption
GRI: 302-4
Our programmes
Facility. Project Effect Project costs Project Deadlines
Kirovsk
Upgrade of the lighting system to LED at ANBP-3 of Apatit’s Kirovsk Branch 		The project helped achieve a 0.505 MW reduction in electric capacity used for industrial lighting at ANBP-3 of Apatit’s Kirovsk Branch compared to 2018, which accounts for around 0.3% of total consumption. RUB 0.082 bln Q4 2019
Cherepovets
Launch of SK 3300 sulphuric acid production plant 		The new SK 3300 plant produces enough process steam to ensure full generating capacity utilisation at Apatit’s thermal power station, which, in turn, leads to lower natural gas consumption by its boilers. RUB 10.5 bln Q1 2020
Balakovo. Kirovsk
Construction of a 100 kW solar power station 		The solar power station pilot running at two production sites of the holding company is geared towards assessing the potential of renewable solar energy and the viability of a further scale-up. RUB 0.01 bln Q3 2020
Volkhov
Construction of a thermal power station with a 34 MW high-efficiency electric turbine and a water treatment system at Apatit’s Volkhov Branch 		The utilisation by the thermal power station at Apatit’s Volkhov Branch of the process steam that is a by-product of the sulphuric acid production plant will help solve the problem of supplying all of the site’s consumers with low-grade steam and significantly reduce the need for the purchase of electricity from third-party power distribution companies. RUB 3 bln Q2 2021