BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 29. Italian engineering and energy services company Saipem has been awarded an engineering services contract by Profertil S.A. to support the evaluation of a planned expansion of its fertilizer production complex in Argentina, according to information provided by Saipem.
The project envisages the development of a new urea plant with a production capacity of 4,450 tonnes per day, aimed at increasing domestic fertilizer production and meeting growing demand in Argentina and regional markets. Saipem will carry out the activities in partnership with Techint Engineering & Construction, combining the companies' engineering and project-development capabilities.
The planned facility will integrate Topsoe's ammonia production technology, Saipem's proprietary Snamprogetti™ Urea technology and thyssenkrupp Uhde's granulation technology. Saipem's scope covers technical services, preparation of licensors' design packages and a structured proposal for the subsequent phases of project development. The contract is expected to run for 11 months.
"The project represents another step in Saipem's long-standing collaboration with Profertil and in our commitment to providing advanced technologies for the fertilizer industry," Saipem said.
The company added that the combination of the technologies is intended to support an efficient and reliable production scheme for the planned expansion.
The project builds on Saipem's previous involvement in the Profertil fertilizer complex in Bahía Blanca. Saipem's website says the complex, completed in 2001, was at the time the world's largest single-train urea plant, with a capacity of 3,250 tonnes per day. The facility comprises an ammonia unit with a capacity of 2,050 tonnes per day, a 3,250-tonne-per-day urea unit and two granulation units, each with a capacity of 1,850 tonnes per day.
The planned 4,450-tonne-per-day unit would therefore have a 37% higher nominal urea capacity than the original Profertil single-train unit.
Saipem has a long history in urea technology, dating back to the development of its Snamprogetti™ Urea process in 1962. The company currently says its technology has been adopted in more than 140 units worldwide, while its plants produce around one-third of global urea output.
Saipem's technology portfolio includes solutions designed to improve energy efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of urea production. The company says its Snamprogetti™ Urea technology has a high on-stream factor and incorporates technologies aimed at reducing emissions and improving process efficiency.
The company's recent fertilizer projects also include a new urea plant in Turkmenistan, for which Saipem was awarded a license and related engineering services in March 2026. That unit is designed for 3,500 tonnes per day, further expanding the company's recent work in large-scale fertilizer production.
Saipem has also been involved in some of the world's largest urea facilities. Its QAFCO V and VI projects in Qatar have a combined capacity of 7,700 tonnes per day, while its Ceres project in Australia is designed to produce 2.14 million tonnes of urea annually.
