Azot (Cherkasy)

Not to be confused with Azot (Sievierodonetsk).

Azot Public Limited Company

Company type	Public Limited Company
Industry	Chemical
Founded	1962
Founder	Council of Ministers (Ukrainian SSR)
Headquarters	Cherkasy , Ukraine
Products	Nitrogen fertilizers
Number of employees	4500[1]
Parent	Ostchem Holding
Website	ostchem.com/en/o-kompanii/proizvodstvo/azot

Azot, also known as Cherkaskyi Azot after Cherkasy, the location of its chemical plant, is one of the biggest manufacturers of nitrogen fertilizers in Ukraine.^[2] Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash's chemical-industry holding corporation, Ostchem Holding, manages the company as well as several other fertilizer manufacturers in Ukraine and other post-Soviet states.

Azot serves both the domestic and export markets. Products are primarily ammonia and ammonium salts, but also include certain specialty ion-exchange resins.

The plant's name, Azot, is Ukrainian for "nitrogen."

Overview

The plant began construction in 1962. On March 14, 1965, it released the first batch of liquid ammonia. By 2011, the company controlled 43 subdivisions on 500 hectares (1,200 acres) at the southern outskirts of Cherkasy city.^[3] These facilities have the capacity to produce up to 3 million tonnes of fertilizers per year,^{[citation needed]} which can then be exported worldwide.

Products include:^[4][1]

• weak nitric acid
• granular ammonium nitrate
• ammonia, liquid or aqueous
• prilled urea
• urea-ammonium nitrate solution
• ammonium sulphate, aqueous or crystalline
• caprolactam, crystalline or liquid
• liquefied carbon dioxide, and
• ion-exchange resins, including annionite AV-17-8 and cationite.

Effects of the 2022 invasion

The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine restrained export and import (the Black Sea harbours are blocked by the Russian Navy) of raw materials, and finished products. It has also reduced domestic demand for fertilizers, due to a reduction in crop planting.

Philanthropy

The company's ultimate owner, Dmytro Firtash, has developed the "Save Your City Ukrainian: Збережи своє місто" brand for his philanthropic endeavours. The company financed renovation of the "Friendship of Peoples" concert hall and public plaza in downtown Cherkasy.^[5] In the surrounding area, it has paid for road repairs and trolleybus transfer center improvements;^[6] renovated schools;^[7] and manages a children's hospital specializing in neurological disorders.^[6]

References

1. OstChem. "PJSC «Azot» (Cherkasy)". OstChem. Retrieved 2023-07-31.
2. "Основні виробники добрив в Україні". kurkul.com (in Ukrainian). 2019-06-28. Retrieved 2020-05-22.
3. "История предприятия". Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2011-07-23.
4. "Продукция". Archived from the original on 2017-10-23. Retrieved 2011-07-23.
5. В Черкассах открыли реконструированный дворец культуры [In Cherkassy, a rebuilt Palace of Culture opens]. Dmytro Firtash. 2012-09-08. Retrieved 2023-07-31.
6. Збережи своє місто [Save Your City]. ua.dmitryfirtash.com (in Ukrainian). Dmytro Firtash. 2012. Retrieved 2023-07-31.
7. "Азот" предоставил помощь школам Черкасс на полмиллиона гривен [Azot assistance to Cherkassy schools worth 0.5 million hryvnias]. Dmytro Firtash. 2013-01-09.