Company: SQM
Filing Date: 2025-04-24
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0000909037-25-000020
Chunk: 51

Company: CHEMICAL & MINING CO OF CHILE INC
Filing Date: 2025-04-24
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 4
Chunk 51
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 in 2024. 
The following table shows our sales volumes of and revenues from specialty plant nutrients for 2024, 2023 and 2022:

2024                                                                                2023                    2022
Sales volumes (Th. MT)                                      982.9                  840.2                   847.9
Sodium nitrate                                               12.5                   16.7                    14.4
Potassium nitrate and sodium potassium nitrate              534.0                  443.5                   477.4
Specialty blends(1)                                         276.7                  243.4                   218.0
Other specialty plant nutrients(2)                          159.7                  136.5                   138.1
Total revenues (in US$millions)                         941.9                   913.9                 1,172.3   
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(1)Includes third party products sold pursuant to our commercial agreement.
(2)Includes trading of other specialty fertilizers.
Specialty Plant Nutrition: Market
Specialty plant nutrients serve various agricultural purposes, including fertigation for high-value crops like vegetables and fruits. These fertilizers must be highly soluble and free of impurities for modern irrigation methods such as drip and micro-sprinkler systems. Potassium nitrate stands out among these nutrients due to its chlorine-free composition, high solubility, proper pH, and lack of impurities, allowing it to command a premium price over alternatives like potassium chloride and sulfate.
Modern irrigation systems are widely used in protected crops and high-value fruit plantations like greenhouses, tunnels (for berries), and shade houses (for tomatoes). Specialty nutrients are also applied for foliar and granular soil applications in niches such as potato and tobacco production.
Specialty plant nutrients have distinct characteristics that can increase productivity and improve quality when applied to specific crops and soils. These products offer certain benefits over commodity fertilizers derived from other sources of nitrogen and potassium, such as urea and potassium chloride.
Since 1990, the international market for specialty plant nutrients has expanded at a quicker pace than the market for commodity fertilizers. Contributing factors include: (i) the adoption of new agricultural technologies like fertigation, hydroponics, and greenhouses; (ii) rising land costs and water scarcity, which have prompted farmers to enhance yields and reduce water consumption; and (iii) growing demand for higher-quality crops.
However, during 2022 and 2023, the market