DJ PhosAgro Becomes First-Ever Two-Time Winner of the Grand Prix at Russian Business Leaders Awards
OJSC PhosAgro (PHOR)
PhosAgro Becomes First-Ever Two-Time Winner of the Grand Prix at Russian
Business Leaders Awards
19-Oct-2020 / 10:00 MSK
Dissemination of a Regulatory Announcement, transmitted by EQS Group.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
For Immediate Release 19 October 2020
PhosAgro Becomes First-Ever Two-Time Winner of the Grand Prix at Russian
Business Leaders Awards
Moscow - PhosAgro (Moscow Exchange, LSE: PHOR), one of the world's leading
vertically integrated phosphate-based fertilizer producers, has become the
first-ever two-time winner of the Grand Prix at the Russian Business
Leaders: Dynamics and Responsibility awards held by the Russian Union of
Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RUIE).
The Grand Prix, a prize awarded to a company that wins more than half of the
categories, was awarded to PhosAgro. The prize has been awarded only twice
in the history of the awards, and both times it has gone to PhosAgro.. The
results of the competition were announced during the RUIE Congress, which is
the culmination of the business programme of Russian Business Weeks. The
Congress was held via video conference due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As noted by Viktor Cherepov, Executive Vice-President of the RUIE and
Chairman of the Organizing Committee, the Russian Business Leaders awards
comprise eight categories including Dynamic Business Development, Best
Project on Import Substitution, Contribution to Social Development,
Environmental Responsibility and Human Resources Development. This year, 152
companies, representing almost half of Russia's regions, took part in the
competition, including SIBUR, Severstal, RusHydro, Novotrans and other major
holdings that won individual categories.
"We presented our first Grand Prix in 2017. Since then, the business
environment in our country has taken significant steps forward, and during
the pandemic it confirmed our maturity and understanding of our
responsibilities. PhosAgro received the second-ever Grand Prix at the RUIE's
Russian Business Leaders awards, which means that the company has raised the
bar even higher, continuing to set the standard for dynamic development and
efficiency, social orientation and environmental sustainability of its
business practices in our country," said Alexander Shokhin, President of the
RUIE.
"I am grateful to the entire Russian business community for their support
and to the jury of the competition for their recognition of PhosAgro's
achievements. This victory is the merit of each of PhosAgro's many thousands
of employees. The RUIE Congress and the Russian Business Leaders awards are
held a few days after PhosAgro's anniversary. PhosAgro is 19 years old and
we are starting our twentieth year in a difficult time that has taught us to
think and work in new ways. Most importantly, thanks to comprehensive
preventive measures at all of our facilities, we were able to maintain the
health of our employees and the smooth functioning of our operations. In the
pandemic conditions, we have not slowed down - the Company continues to
increase fertilizer production volumes and set new records. As a key
taxpayer, we aid the social and economic development of the Murmansk,
Vologda, Saratov and Leningrad regions. We implement many social and
charitable programmes, supporting veterans and the development of education
and culture. We are building sports facilities, opening museums and
developing a tourism destination in the Khibiny which has become one of the
best ski resorts in the country. Each year, the Company allocates more than
RUB 2.5 billion towards these goals. This year, we have already spent double
this figure. I promise that we will continue to make every effort to
reaffirm our high rank as one of the leaders of Russian business," said
PhosAgro CEO Andrey Guryev.
In its citation for the Grand Prix, the jury noted the stable dynamics of
the Company's performance growth, productivity growth, personnel development
programmes, the level of funding and the scale of environmental projects,
the high level of social protection of employees guaranteed by collective
agreements, the Company's active participation in programmes for the
socio-economic development of the regions and municipalities where it
operates, and the scale of charity programmes implemented in accordance with
the social strategy. JSC Apatit (part of PhosAgro Group) was awarded a
separate prize for Tax Project of the Year in the Automation of Tax
Processes category for its Export Automation project.
The jury evaluated the activities of Russian companies in 2019, which was a
record year for PhosAgro in terms of production of fertilizers and feed
phosphates at over 9.5 million tonnes (up 6.1% year-on-year over 2018).
Production of apatite and nepheline concentrates was 11.7 million tonnes
(5.8% growth vs 2018). The Company increased sales to its priority domestic
market by 10.5%, supplying Russian farmers with over 3 million tonnes of
fertilizers. According to RAFP, 35% of all fertilizers purchased by Russian
farmers at the end of 2019 were produced by PhosAgro.
In 2019, PhosAgro was actively involved in the creation of a green standard
for Russian agricultural products with improved environmental
characteristics. At the initiative of PhosAgro and with the support of all
RAFP members, an eco-label was developed confirming the high environmental
performance of Russian-made mineral fertilizers.
The Company announced the early achievement of the key targets in its
development strategy to 2020 and adopted a development strategy to 2025.
PhosAgro is targeting 20% growth in production volumes. Sustainable
development is also one of the priorities of the new Strategy. The United
Nations has recognised the Company's success in this area by including
PhosAgro as a member of the UN Global Compact LEAD platform for socially
responsible business.
PhosAgro is a key taxpayer and an active participant in socio-economic
development programmes in the regions where it operates. PhosAgro allocates
more than RUB 2.5 billion annually to charitable projects. In the context of
the Coronavirus pandemic, PhosAgro has strengthened its traditional support
for medical and social institutions and has also implemented a comprehensive
set of measures to protect employees from the virus. In total, over RUB 2.5
billion were allocated for this purpose between March and October of this
year.
About PhosAgro
PhosAgro (www.phosagro.ru [1]) is one of the world's leading vertically
integrated phosphate-based fertilizer producers in terms of production
volumes of phosphate-based fertilizers and high-grade phosphate rock with a
P2O5 content of 39% and higher. PhosAgro's environmentally friendly
fertilizers stand out for their high efficiency, and they do not lead to the
contamination of soils with heavy metals.
The Company is the largest phosphate-based fertilizer producer in Europe (by
total combined capacity for DAP/MAP/NP/NPK/NPS), the largest producer of
high-grade phosphate rock with a P2O5 content of 39%, a top-three producer
of MAP/DAP globally, one of the leading producers of feed phosphates (MCP)
in Europe, and the only producer in Russia, and Russia's only producer of
nepheline concentrate (according to the RAFP).
PhosAgro's main products include phosphate rock, over 50 grades of
fertilizers, feed phosphates, ammonia, and sodium tripolyphosphate, which
are used by customers in 102 countries spanning all of the world's inhabited
continents. The Company's priority markets outside of Russia and the CIS are
Latin America, Europe and Asia.
PhosAgro's shares are traded on the Moscow Exchange, and global depositary
receipts (GDRs) for shares trade on the London Stock Exchange (under the
ticker PHOR). Since 1 June 2016, the Company's GDRs have been included in
the MSCI Russia and MSCI Emerging Markets indexes.
More information about PhosAgro can be found on the website: www.phosagro.ru
[1].
ISIN: US71922G2093
Category Code: MSCM
TIDM: PHOR
LEI Code: 25340053KRUNNYUWF472
OAM Categories: 3.1. Additional regulated information required to be
disclosed under the laws of a Member State
Sequence No.: 86100
EQS News ID: 1141461
End of Announcement EQS News Service
1: https://eqs-cockpit.com/cgi-bin/fncls.ssp?fn=redirect&url=443ca16678306c21ad7d78a6b83a5230&application_id=1141461&site_id=vwd&application_name=news
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 19, 2020 03:00 ET (07:00 GMT)
