Price rises to kill fertiliser black market: Agriculture Minister

Minister of Agriculture Adel El-Beltagy described the recent governmental decision to increase the price of fertilisers to EGP 2,000 per tonne will tackle the black market.

The price rise from EGP 1,500 per tonne is also part of a move to protect fertiliser producers threatened with bankruptcy.

El-Beltagy told Daily News Egypt that “the government’s decision will raise the price of a bag of urea to EGP 100 and nitrates to EGP 95”. He added that the current prices are almost 50% less than market prices because they are subsidised by the government.

Investment Minister Ashraf Salman told Daily News Egypt last week that the government is considering cancelling a fee imposed on the fertiliser industry.

However, El-Beltagy said: “I refuse to cancel the fee imposed on fertiliser manufacturers until the needs of the local market are met.”