Doha, Qatar; October 25, 2018: Qatar Fertiliser Company (QAFCO), Agrico and Yara International ASA (Norway) on 25 October 2018 signed a Cooperation Agreement to establish a Test Facility in Qatar to test greenhouse technologies, nutrient management and fertigation solutions with the aim of developing an appropriate hydroponics system best suited for the Qatari climate and with the main objective to achieve the optimum possible results in growing e.g. fruits and vegetables in local climate conditions with limited access to water.
Mr. Abdulrahman Alsuwaidi, Chief Executive Officer of QAFCO, Mr. Nasser Al Khalaf, General Manager of AGRICO and Mr. Ivan de Witte, General Manager of Yara International ASA Trade Representative office in Qatar, jointly signed the cooperation agreement on behalf of the three companies.
QAFCO continues its participation in initiatives which contribute towards Qatar’s goal of agricultural self-sufficiency through the partnership with YARA and Agrico. The partnership intends to identify an optimum combination of fertilizer blends through various techniques that can help improve the quality and yield of Qatari produce.
Mr. Al Khalaf expressed, “Agrico is proud to cooperate with QAFCO and YARA to further develop and increase the local vegetables production which will play a major role in Qatar 2030 vision of achieving food security in the agriculture sector. We are confident in the cooperation to bring sustainable high yield production all around the year. With this platform we will be able to increase awareness among local farms which will improve their yield and quality by using environmental control greenhouse system and low irrigation consumption.
Mr. de Witte expressed, “Yara is proud to have been a partner to the state of Qatar for nearly 50 years through our shareholding in QAFCO. With this cooperation agreement we make another important commitment to development of Qatar’s agricultural sector. Yara being the world crop nutrition leader and driving innovative and sustainable growth in agricultural sector together with our partners AGRICO and QAFCO will develop better crop nutrition solutions tailored for Qatar. By means of this and other partnerships we have engaged in, we intend to achieve our ultimate goal to impact the whole Qatar farming sector positively in terms of economic viability and environmental impact.
The cooperation agreement formalizes ongoing efforts by the three entities to support the farming sector in Qatar and demonstrate the impact of improved growing methods and nutrient management.. Over the past months, the entities have already engaged in joined activities to prepare the test facilities. During the next 12 months the parties will operate the Test Facility jointly and share the outcome with other stakeholders in Qatar.
ABOUT QAFCO
Qatar Fertiliser Company (QAFCO) was created in 1969 as a joint venture company to produce chemical fertilizers. It was the first and most significant step in Qatar’s industrial diversification program to utilize its natural gas resources. Since then, QAFCO has steered its way successfully, responding adequately to the world market demand for fertilizer and living up to the expectations of its shareholders to become the world’s largest single-site producers of Urea and Ammonia. QAFCO is now owned by Industries Qatar (75%) and Yara Nederland BV (25%). For more information please visit www.qafco.qa
ABOUT AGRICO
Established in 2011 by Mr. Ahmad Hussain Al-Khalaf, AGRICO is a private local Agricultural Development Company specialized in developing High-Tec greenhouse and cultivation system suitable to Qatar environment and was founded on the principle of sustainable long term agricultural production with an eye on the National vision of achieving food security. AGRICO aims to achieve this through combining local innovation, international expertise and the best available technology in the world.
We have made a breakthrough in 2015 in our greenhouse system and we have proven that we can produce vegetable all around the year in Qatar. We target to spread the technology around the country and increase the awareness of sustainable healthy fruits and vegetables production.
ABOUT YARA
In collaboration with customers and partners, Yara grows knowledge to responsibly feed the world and protect the planet, to fulfill its vision of a collaborative society, a world without hunger and a planet respected.
Our crop nutrition solutions and precision farming offerings allow farmers to increase yields and improve product quality while reducing environmental impact. Our environmental and industrial solutions improve air quality and reduce emissions, and are key ingredients in the production of a wide range of products. We foster an open culture of diversity and inclusion that promotes the safety and integrity of our employees, contractors, business partners, and society at large.
Founded in 1905 to solve emerging famine in Europe, Yara has a worldwide presence with more than 17,000 employees and operations in over 60 countries. In 2017, Yara reported revenues of USD 11.4 billion. www.yara.com
