Atome signs 10-year offtake deal for Villeta fertiliser project

12th Sep 2025 12:13

(Sharecast News) - Atome announced the signing of a definitive 10-year offtake agreement with Yara International on Friday, to purchase the entire output from its planned $630m Villeta low-carbon fertiliser project in Paraguay, marking the final commercial milestone before securing financing.

The AIM-traded company said the deal would cover all 260,000 tonnes per year of low-carbon calcium ammonium nitrate fertiliser expected to be produced at Villeta using 100% renewable hydropower.

It said the agreement included an option to extend, and would see Atome benefit from Yara's sales and distribution network across South America.

Atome said the long-term, committed nature of the agreement "underpins the long-term success and profitability of the project, aligning all parties, underscoring the bankability of the project for lenders and validating Atome's business model".

It added that final investment decision was targeted for later this year, with construction expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2025.

"Atome is pleased to sign this definitive and final offtake agreement with Yara, the global leader in crop nutrition," said Terje Bakken, Atome's director for ammonia and fertiliser markets.

"We know that making the switch to low-carbon fertiliser is one of the most effective ways to reduce food production emissions.

"The agreement with Yara is an important validation of our commercial model, underpinned by the market case for the world's biggest food and beverage producers to urgently address agricultural emissions in their supply chains."

Chief executive Olivier Mussat called the deal "a landmark milestone in the delivery of our Villeta Project in Paraguay," adding: "We are immensely proud to be a part of this first-of-its-kind agreement, the largest low-carbon fertiliser supply agreement globally, which clearly demonstrates the commercial demand for Atome's low-carbon fertiliser."

At 1146 BST, shares in Atome were up 24.04% at 61.4p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.