Company: SQM
Filing Date: 2025-04-24
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0000909037-25-000020
Chunk: 52

Company: CHEMICAL & MINING CO OF CHILE INC
Filing Date: 2025-04-24
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 4
Chunk 52
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 for agricultural soluble potassium nitrate saw a reduction in consumption by approximately 12% and 8%, respectively, due to significant price increases, adverse climate conditions, and high inflation rates. These estimates exclude locally produced and sold potassium nitrate in China and only account for net imports and exports.
Notwithstanding two consecutive years of decline, we estimate that the Specialty Plant Nutrition market experienced a favorable recovery during 2024. Excluding production and consumption within China, we estimate that the market grew by around 17%, reaching levels slightly below those observed in 2020.
Specialty Plant Nutrition: Our Products
We produce three main types of specialty plant nutrients that provide nutritional solutions for fertigation, direct soil applications and foliar fertilizers: potassium nitrate (KNO3), sodium nitrate (NaNO3) and specialty blends. We also sell other specialty fertilizers, including products produced by third parties. All of these products are used in solid or liquid form primarily on high-value crops such as fruits, flowers and some vegetables. These fertilizers are widely used in crops using modern agricultural techniques such as hydroponics, greenhouses and crops with foliar application and fertigation (in the latter case, the fertilizer is dissolved in water prior to irrigation).
Specialty plant nutrients have certain advantages over commercial fertilizers, such as fast and effective absorption (without requiring nitrification), superior water solubility, and low chloride content. One of the most important products in this business line is potassium nitrate, which is marketed in crystalline or prilled form, allowing for different application methods. Crystalline potassium nitrate products are ideal for fertigation and foliar applications, and potassium nitrate beads are suitable for direct soil applications.
Special blends are produced using our own special plant nutrients and other components in blending plants operated by us or our affiliates and related companies around the world.
We have developed brands for commercialization of our Specialty Plant Nutrition products according to the different applications and uses of our products. Our main brands are: Ultrasol® (fertigation), Qrop® (soil application), Speedfol® (foliar application) and Allganic® (organic agriculture).
The advantages of our special Ultrasol® vegetable blends include the following:
•Fully water soluble for efficient use in hydroponics, fertigation, foliar applications, and advanced agricultural techniques, reducing water usage.
•Chloride-free to prevent toxicity in chlorine-sensitive crops.
•Provides nitrogen in nitric form for faster nutrient absorption compared to ure