Long the industrial bedrock of Polk County, the 100-year-old industry has nearly exhausted the supply of phosphate rock there and in eastern Hillsborough. Several companies now are looking to mine land they own in rural inland areas of the state's southwest. But residents and politicians there don't appreciate Florida's third-largest industry moving in. They worry about the environmental degradation of the Peace River, in addition to the industry's massive use of water and other issues.
Several permitting decisions pending in the southwest -- as well as an attempt by local government officials to toughen the state's phosphate mining law -- make 2003 a crucial year for the industry, which saw three Florida companies go bankrupt in 2002.
Pointing to their progress in land reclamation and water recycling -- statewide, more than 90% of the water used in the mining and processing of phosphate is reused -- phosphate executives still hold out hope of convincing southwest Floridians that the industry is a good neighbor. "The industry has shown we can be sensitive to changing needs," says Richard J. Krakowski, vice president and general manager of IMC Phosphates Co. "I think the companies that continue to make adjustments, continue to participate in the dialogue and continue to be sensitive will continue to be here."
TRENDS
Cargill: Tampa-based Cargill Fertilizer expects to grow volume 35% this year after its November acquisition of Farmland Hydro.
Recovery: After a three-year downward trend in the price of phosphate, the industry appears headed toward recovery this year. Increasing demand for commercial fertilizer is expected to pump up the price. Recent prices for diammonium phosphate, the most common phosphate fertilizer, reflect the fourth consecutive quarterly increase from the bottom of the cycle a year ago. According to the industry trade publication Green Markets:
The central Florida rail price, which reflects domestic shipments, was running between $138 and $140 per short ton in November, up from $130 to $135 the year before.
The U.S. Gulf export price out of Tampa, which reflects overseas shipments, was running $152 to $153 per short ton in November, compared to $147 to $149 the year before.
Oil: Oil industry leaders expect quiet on the drilling front this year, after the close of two of Florida's longest-running environmental disputes. Last year, President George Bush and Gov. Jeb Bush announced deals to prevent drilling for natural gas off the state's Gulf coast and to block the expansion of oil wells in the Big Cypress National Preserve. The federal government agreed to pay Chevron and two other companies $115 million for oil and gas leases in the Destin Dome, about 25 miles off Pensacola. In a separate deal, the feds agreed to pay $120 million to the Collier family to stop drilling for oil in Big Cypress. Congress still has to sign off on the Collier deal. Meanwhile, exploration continues in the deep waters of the Gulf off of Florida.
Coastal Petroleum: Coastal Petroleum's decades-long fight with the state of Florida over oil leases it owns in the eastern Gulf of Mexico is not over, according to the company's lawyers. The Apalachicola-based company lost its most recent court battle in October, when a Tallahassee circuit judge ruled the state does not have to compensate Coastal for prohibiting drilling in areas for which the company has held leases since 1947. The company has appealed to the Florida Supreme Court.