S&P Global recently reported PhosAgro had provided "corrections for a significant ministerial error" under the appropriate US trade regulation after the miner asserted the department had deviated from its metrics when calculating the rate at which it believed the Russian government subsidised its fertiliser industry, according to a partially redacted filing the firm obtained.

The US agency only included sales from PhosAgro subsidiary JSC Apatit when calculating the sales denominator to set the tariff, ignoring exports to third-countries through an affiliated trading company in Switzerland.

The company believes total 2019 sales figures included a double-count of Russian domestic sales which could lead to a doubling of the tariff rate imposed on PhosAgro shipments from 10% to 20%. PhosAgro believes this ran counter to a prior statement by the department that it would use total sales when determining the subsidy available to PhosAgro and other fertiliser companies in Morocco by their domestic governments.

A public affairs official said in a statement to Mining Journal the Commerce Department was aware of the filing and was reviewing the allegations.

Mosaic, the USA's largest phosphate fertiliser producer, started petitioning the US International Trade Commission in June to implement the duties, saying unfairly subsidised imports were causing significant harm to its operations. https://www.mining-journal.com/agminerals/news/1399946/usa-unveils-import-duties-on-morocco-russia-phosphate-imports

The department is expected to proceed with final determinations on tariff rates by February 8, 2021.