By Vladislav Vorotnikov - Russia correspondent, and Simon Duke, Managing Editor - EMEA
Russian oil and gas company Tatneft has disclosed plans to build two amino acid production factories in the Republic of Tatarstan.
It is understood that one of the factories will be dedicated to the production of methionine, while the other will process around 500,000 tonnes/year of grain to manufacture xanthan gum, valine, tryptophan and isoleucine. The second plant would have a combined nameplate capacity of around 65,000 tonnes/year.
Tatneft did not provide any details about the planned methionine production, only mentioning that the additional quantities will be sufficient for Russia to abandon imports fully. Russia’s import dependency for methionine is estimated to be close to 59%, as domestic consumption stands at 60,000 tonnes/year, and local production is limited to 25,000 tonnes/year, Tatneft said in an explanatory note.
Timelines for Tatneft’s projects were not communicated.
Chinese amino acids producer Eppen visited Tatneft in October 2024 at the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Tatarstan, during which a Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the companies for a feed additives production joint venture project. However, Eppen informed Expana today that they are not involved with either of the two plant projects Tatneft recently disclosed.
The Tatneft projects will be implemented as a part of the Russian national plan called "Technical Support for Feed Security," as revealed by Ilnaz Mukhametyanov, First Deputy Head of the Executive Committee of Nizhnekamskiy district in Tatarstan.
Under the Russian import-replacement initiative, feed additive manufacturers will be eligible for reimbursement of 20% of capital costs associated with the construction and modernization of existing capacities, the Russian government stipulated in a statement on its social media channels on March 13. Under the initiative, capacities launched after January 1, 2027, will be subjected to state aid.
