Nassef Sawiris on industry consolidation
From #ADNOC INSIGHTS: In conversation with Nassef Sawiris · · ADNOCGroup
“The fertilizer industry suffered from over capacity, so the consolidation comes at a good time — I will be cautiously optimistic that we should have a brighter few years coming.”
On , Nassef Sawiris, CEO at OCI N.V., spoke about industry consolidation during #ADNOC INSIGHTS: In conversation with Nassef Sawiris on ADNOCGroup.
About Nassef Sawiris
In a July 2019 interview with ADNOC Insights, Nassef Sawiris discussed the rationale behind the joint venture between ADNOC and OCI, which created a global nitrogen fertilizer leader. Sawiris stated that the partnership allows the companies to optimize sourcing by serving regions from the most opportune production sites, reducing "criss-crossing cargoes" and providing customers with redundancy if one plant is down. He described the venture as a "win‑win proposition" that should add value for customers and both companies' bottom lines. Sawiris noted that nitrogen fertilizers grow at around 2% per annum, driven by population growth and changing diets, and called fertilizer "the single largest value item in the food chain." He said the fertilizer industry had suffered from overcapacity but expressed cautious optimism about a brighter few years ahead due to consolidation. Sawiris also emphasized the importance of disciplined capital allocation and described Abu Dhabi as "our home," citing its operating stability and legal system as reasons for establishing OCI's headquarters there.