Belarus loads first potash shipment to US since 2021, FT reports
In short
A Belarusian company loaded 30,000 tonnes of granular potassium chloride onto a Marshall Islands-flagged vessel at the Bronka port in St Petersburg on Sept 15, the first Belarusian potash shipment to the United States in four years, according to RBC, Vedomosti and TASS, all citing the Financial Times. Discharge is expected on Oct 14 at the port of New Orleans, Vedomosti reported, citing shipping data platform Kpler. Vedomosti said the shipment followed a US decision in December 2025 to begin easing sanctions on the Belarusian potash sector as part of a broader prisoner-release deal.
Why it matters
The cargo is small relative to US potash imports, but it is the first Belarusian potash delivery to the US since 2021 and, as Vedomosti put it, another sign of improving relations between Washington and Minsk. It also follows public statements by the US and Belarusian presidents about a possible larger fertilizer deal, though Lukashenko has said Belarus cannot supply large volumes because its potash is already contracted for 2026.
Key facts
- A Belarusian company loaded 30,000 tonnes of granular potassium chloride (MOP) at the Bronka port in St Petersburg on Sept 15, on a vessel under the flag of the Marshall Islands [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- The shipment is the first Belarusian potash delivery to the United States in four years [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Discharge is expected on Oct 14 at the port of New Orleans, Louisiana, according to Kpler data cited by Vedomosti [ 1 , 2 ]
- According to Argus, Belarus exported an average of 635,000 tonnes of potash a year to the US between 2017 and 2021, while the US imported 5.6 million tonnes in 2025 and Canada supplies almost 80% of that import [ 2 ]
- Vedomosti reported that Washington began easing sanctions on the Belarusian potash industry in December 2025 as part of a broader prisoner-release deal, after imposing them in 2021 [ 2 ]
- US President Donald Trump said in September that the US was working on a “large-scale deal” to buy fertilizer from Belarus and claimed the imports would be “substantially cheaper” than what the US pays Canada [ 2 ]
- President Alexander Lukashenko said in September that Belarus cannot supply large volumes of potash fertilizer to the US because all Belarusian potash is contracted for 2026, while confirming readiness to sell to the US [ 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- A Belarusian company loaded 30,000 tonnes of granular potassium chloride at a port in St Petersburg on Sept 15 onto a vessel under the flag of the Marshall Islands [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- It is the first Belarusian potash shipment to the United States in four years [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Discharge is expected on Oct 14 at the port of New Orleans [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- The US began easing sanctions on the Belarusian potash industry in December 2025 as part of a broader prisoner-release deal, after imposing sanctions in 2021 Reported only by Vedomosti, which attributes the detail to the Financial Times; the other documents do not mention the sanctions timeline.
- Trade comparison figures: an average of 635,000 tonnes a year exported to the US in 2017-2021, 5.6 million tonnes imported by the US in 2025, and Canada supplying almost 80% of US potash imports Carried by a single outlet, Vedomosti, citing the Argus agency.
- Donald Trump's assertion that fertilizer imported from Belarus would be substantially cheaper than what the US pays Canada A claim by the US president reported by one outlet, without figures in the documents to support it.
- Whether more Belarusian potash shipments to the US will follow Lukashenko said all Belarusian potash is contracted for 2026, and the documents do not say whether further cargoes are planned.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- RBC reports, citing the FT, that Belarus will ship potash to the US for the first time since 2021, with 30,000 tonnes loaded in St Petersburg on Sept 15 and discharge expected on Oct 14 in New Orleans [ 1 ]
- Vedomosti, citing the FT, publishes the loading details (Bronka port, Marshall Islands flag, Kpler discharge data), the December 2025 easing of US sanctions on Belarusian potash and the September statements by Trump and Lukashenko [ 2 ]
- TASS reports the same shipment, citing Argus for the Sept 15 loading of 30,000 tonnes at the Bronka port [ 3 ]