ISSUE N˚ 8 | July 2016
THE LEADING LADIES AT SUR
Patricia, Renata, Carla and Marcela, four engineers originally from northern Chile, are in charge of the solar evaporation ponds at SQM’s operations in the Tarapacá Region. Together, they manage a team of 37 employees. Here is the story of these professionals, who lead a largely male group. (pg. 6)
DON FRANCISCO VISITS COYA SUR
SQM DISEMBARKS IN HOLLAND
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD IN TOCOPILLA
To film some scenes for his TV program, the distinguished Chilean entertainer visited SQM’s operations in Coya Sur and shared stories with workers and executives. (pg. 17)
The recently inaugurated logistics terminal has a water soluble fertilizer plant and represents a major step in transporting and selling our products in Europe. (pg. 18)
Eugenio Ponce toured the port on his first official visit in his new role, just as he did 35 years earlier on his first trip to the Company’s facilities in the north. (pg. 14)
HAVE FUN, PLAY AND WIN (pg. 19)
01 Editorial
02 Facts and Figures
A NEW PATH
of global sales of potassium nitrate in 2015 were made by SQM, the world’s largest producer of this compound.
New times for new dreams are on the horizon for SQM. We have successfully completed our strategic development process, better known as SDP. The result: a clear strategy to correctly decide what to do and what not to do; which path to choose for our future. And I am very happy about the direction we are taking.
The process has provided us with a diagnostic of opportunities to continue growing and a clear strategy for each business line. Even more importantly, it has identified opportunities to do new things to leverage our real capacities. It also pinpointed exactly where our Company adds the most value: as a selectively integrated mining operator that processes and markets products in order to efficiently supply industries that are strategic for human development such as health, food and technology. While many of these initiatives had been analyzed and considered before, now they have been formalized and transformed into a clear goal that we hope will enable us to duplicate our operating results by 2020. How are we going to achieve such an ambitious goal?
202
number of SQM workers in foreign locations, equivalent to 4.5% of all employees.
already begun the search process to improve our project assets in other countries and become more geographically diverse. The first announcement arising from these efforts was the purchase of 50% of Minera Exar in the Salar de Cauchari, to develop the Caucharí-Olaroz lithium project in the province of Jujuy, Argentina.
5%
increase in
sales volumes of water soluble fertilizers in 2015.
This growth also involves a new twist in our DNA, which is opening us up to the possibility of mining other minerals. To achieve this goal, I have defined a new organizational structure with changes in the responsibilities of several senior executives. The structure is designed to enhance team work, focus efforts and generate more synergies among the Company’s different areas. Now that we have a new path, with the challenge of taking another step in our growth, I must spend less time on the contingency and more on managing the business. I ask you, as I have done before, for your support in this new phase. Hand in hand with the new spirit that M1 has instilled and the strength that SQM’s employees are known for, I encourage you to passionately commit to this new path.
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SQM today
Photography: Tamara Rebolledo, Álvaro Cifuentes, Camila Villarroel, Claudio Álvarez, Nelson Morales, Andrés González, Soledad Meléndez y Víctor Burgos. Design: www.singular.cl Illustration: Daniela Vergara. Printing: Ograma S.A. Los Militares 4290, 1erfloor, Las Condes Tel: +56 2 24252000 | comunicaciones@sqm.com © All rights reserved.
The trip was a valuable opportunity to understand the business reality of our customers in the far east, particularly the challenges facing their industries and their development plans. The SQM delegation was led by Patricio de Solminihac, CEO; Eugenio Ponce, formerly Senior Commercial Vice President and currently Chairman of the Board; and Felipe Smith, Iodine, Lithium and Industrial Chemicals Senior Vice President. In China, South Korea and Japan, they met with distributors, manufacturers of batteries and materials for batteries, producers of electronic components for LCD screens and also producers of specialty plastics.
3 KNO
√xy
They also took advantage of the trip to meet with experts in the battery market to better understand lithium market projections, which forecast continued growth in demand driven by rising battery use and the emergence of electric propulsion vehicles onto the automotive and bus market (stimulated by Chinese government subsidies).
SQM CROSSES THE ANDES In March, SQM and Lithium Americas (LAC) announced a joint venture to develop the Caucharí-Olaroz lithium project in the province of Jujuy, Argentina. The objective is to reach a production capacity of 40,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent. In this context, three SQM executives Patricio de Solminihac, CEO; Pablo Altimiras, Planning and Development Senior Vice President; and Juan Carlos Barrera, Potassium and Lithium Operations Senior Vice President, were received by the Argentinean Secretary of Mining, Daniel Meilán, together with Franco Mignacco and Thomas Hodgson, executives from Minera Exar and LAC, respectively.
Some participants that had competed in the Cape Epic and Titan Desert races describe this race as the most difficult in South America. Its first stage features a vertical climb of 33 km, which starts in the town of San Pedro de Atacama and moves towards the border with Argentina and Bolivia. The altitude, sand and unending slopes were the acid test and provided a major challenge on the ride towards the imposing Licancabur volcano. The event had other extremely demanding stages, such as 80 kilometers through Valle de la Muerte (Death Valley) and Cordillera de la Sal (Salt Mountains), along with 45 kilometers through Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley). “This fourth version of the race, the 2016 Atacama Challenger, was more demanding and longer, and was more than a typical sporting event in a tourist hot spot. We want to continue to contribute to the local economy in San Pedro and the wellbeing of the Atacameño or LikanAntai communities,” commented Fernando Reeve, race director for the Atacama Challenger. The ATCH MTB was possible thanks to the joint work of its director, entrepreneurs from native communities and efforts to shed light on issues of importance to indigenous peoples. The event was sponsored by SQM, Transportes Romero, Mahindra, Turismo Alonzo, Traumateam, 360 Energy Drink and residents and authorities from San Pedro de Atacama.
The next day they had an official meeting at the Jujuy regional government headquarters with the province’s highest ranking official, Gerardo Morales, along with Carlos Abud Robles, the Minister of Economic Development and Production, and José María Palomares, chairman of the board of JEMSE (Jujuy State Energy and Mining Society).
(π)
Construction is slated to begin during the first half of 2017 and the pilot phase is scheduled to start no later than 2019. The total investment estimated for the project should reach between US$500 and US$600 million, depending on the final design criteria.
Chemists, industrial engineers and mechanical engineers are the
3 most common professions at SQM.
04 Overheard...
By improving on what we already do and also opening up to new businesses. Given our experience and knowledge as a mining operator, we have
Communications and Public Affairs Manager: Carolina García Huidobro Head of Corporate Communications: Álvaro Cifuentes Head of External Communications: Tamara Rebolledo Journalists: Carolina García Huidobro, Soledad Meléndez, Tamara Rebolledo, Álvaro Cifuentes, Camila Villarroel y Claudio Álvarez.
After three days and 168 kilometers pedaling through the desert, volcanoes, ravines and valleys of San Pedro, with altitudes ranging from 2,400 to 3,970 meters above sea level, only 400 tenacious cyclists (of a total of 500) hailing from Mexico, the United States, Spain, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile, managed to finish the Atacama Challenger Mountainbike 2016. Chilean competitors Gonzalo Aravena and Evelyn Muñoz won the event.
VISITING CUSTOMERS IN ASIA
As everyone knows, the year 2015 was a complex time for the Company as a result of the legal processes we were involved in. However, as a company we have provided all public explanations necessary and have fully collaborated with authorities on a variety of fronts. The Company will emerge from this crisis stronger.
The process identified that we are currently at a starting point of which we should be proud: reasonable returns, a cautious yet robust financial policy, positive achievements in cost savings and increases in productivity trigged by M1. This sound financial judgment helped us face reduced prices in most of our products without any major setbacks.
CYCLISTS CONQUERED THE DESERT IN ATACAMA CHALLENGER 2016
47%
By Patricio de Solminihac Chief Executive Officer of SQM
Despite this contingency, we should be proud because we did not let this urgent matter distract us from the important matters. We have had the fortitude to face these issues without weakening our operating and commercial performance. At the same time, we began the strategic planning process to more precisely diagnose our real capacities and determine where to focus our efforts.
03 Briefs
2014
2015
19%
reduction in workplace accidents during 2015 over the prior year.
“We are available to replicate the Corfo-Rockwood agreement to increase lithium production. We could even do itfaster than they could.” Pablo Altimiras,
Development and Planning Senior Vice President in an interview with Diario Financiero regarding the possibility of reaching an agreement with Corfo to increase lithium production levels.
“Since we began M1, we have reduced operating costs by close to US$100 million and boosted productivity by 20% in some plants. We anticipate that 100% of the Company will be operating under the lean methodology by 2017. This methodology has led to more direct involvement from workers in operational decisions.”
Carlos Díaz,
Nitrate and Iodine Operations Senior Vice President in an interview with La Tercera on the strategy adopted by SQM to face years of price reductions in some of its products.
“Given SQM’s global leadership in lithium production, one of the main objectives of this venture that we are initiating together is to leverage their technical experience to significantly minimize the risks of developing Caucharí and to successfully move forward on a project designed to bring new supply to the market at the right time.”
Tom Hodgson,
CEO of LAC when asked about the study and project it will develop jointly with SQM in the Salar de Caucharí.
july 2016
3
05 Limitless
06 First Person
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA OUTLETS VISIT SALAR DE ATACAMA
THE LORD OF THE PUPPETS By Claudio Álvarez U.
By Álvaro Cifuentes y Carolina García Huidobro
Mario Torres is known among his coworkers and the residents of María Elena for his skill in making the figurines known as puppets (“monos”) that are burned at local Pampa New Year’s celebrations, a tradition that represents doing away with the bad from the previous year to welcome the coming year with hope.
During the first half of the year, the Salar de Atacama has received investors, customers and representatives from some of the world’s most important media outlets. We were visited by The Economist (England), The Financial Times (England), El País (Spain), Nikkei (Japan) and Industrial Minerals (British trade magazine considered the most important non metallic mining publication in the world). Professionals from each of these media outlets expressed great interest in and a desire to experience first-hand how SQM operates in the Salar de Atacama. Most were motivated by the explosive growth in the price of lithium seen recently.
Each year on December 31st in María Elena, Mario Torres, an operator in the control room at the Coya Sur prilling plant, becomes the indisputable Master of Ceremonies for the New Year’s festivities. Hundreds of people gather around his house to participate in one of the most popular year end traditions for families from the Pampa and other areas in northern Chile: “burning monos”.
The communications team at SQM coordinated each visit with help on site from Alejandro Bucher and Enrique Peña in the Salar de Atacama and Ronald Contreras in the Salar del Carmen. As has become habit, once more these three professionals and their respective teams took time to explain each of the stages of the lithium production process. In Santiago, Patricio de Solminihac, CEO, and Felipe Smith, Iodine, Lithium and Industrial Chemicals Senior Vice President also contributed time and knowledge.
Mario Torres wanted to go a step further with this ritual: for more than three decades, he has surprised everyone with his figurines, with attractive designs that have evolved over time in terms of technique and creativity. Currently, this local artist makes structures that stand over two meters tall and represent different characters from TV, film or show business.
“Lithium: Chile’s Buried Treasure,” was the title of Henry Sanderson’s lengthy article for the British newspaper The Financial Times, where he explains why the price of this metal has increased, the decisive role played by Chile and SQM given their enormous reserves in the Salar de Atacama, and the technological developments implemented. He also mentions the threat for Chile of losing its leadership in this market as a result of Chilean politics. The article by the Japanese financial publication, Nikkei, tells how the nation of the rising sun reached Chile thanks to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), in order to develop high performance EV batteries and
The New Year’s Eve ritual consists of burning a rag doll made from old or worn clothes contributed by each family member. The burning symbolizes the end of one era, turning evil into ashes to optimistically welcome the new era beginning with the change of year.
supply 80% of their raw materials. SQM played the leading role in the article entitled “EV Batteries: Rising Salt Lake.”. The article in El País covered one of the facility’s important environmental issues. Under the title “Flamingo Baptism”, the s¬tory highlights the flamingo banding process performed each year by our Company and the National Forestry Corporation at Puilar Lagoon. “Thanks to the band, we learn valuable information regarding its movement patterns,” thus positively impacting the care and conservation of the species. Myles McCormick from Industrial Minerals, titled his piece: “SQM: Outside the box; inside the triangle.” It touched on all of the changes implemented by the Company as a result of the contingency in 2015, and also on the challenges it faces as the world’s largest producer of lithium.
The reporters from Nikkei were surprised by what they referred to as “beautiful scenery.”
box; tside the u O : M Q S e triangle inside th SQM
rals sale of mine ed from the revenues accru of its total that 39% extracted. the salar, indicated itation at SQM has ds on explo percentage revenue depen estimates that this FO . while COR een 60% and 75% io de Patric is really betw procedures ongoing, , declined bent CEO With court r to IM. , SQM’s incum Solminhac on the former matte he said that to comment the latter, though, we have Regarding dent that act”. contr was “confi the the any s, the 1980 ations in the comp t to bring ndalos n the late with our oblig achev, sough elas y escáct of increasing heavy reboot complied Telenov Mikhail Gorb modern age and the been the subje past two years. borders negative a period of the SQM has USSR into rs, open to following Chile over s argue that Open doo both cases has led for scrutiny in ing trial, prosecutor off by the its economy a coverage t from d . The fallou ational medi mented two In an ongo boletas were signe stagnation e not intern imple of he imag and c or range a ces to the bloc, its publi domestic and false invoi payment To reform (openness) regime of isation, with rum in to facilitate – glasnost the organ links to the former company political spect under a key policies perceived ing). r and across the helped by world, (restructur – its owne tor’s politicians favourable treatment side of the (SQM), perestroika io sto Pinochet e was once the dicta for the other SA ng code. Patric exchange the Augu Today, on y Minera Julio Ponc Chile’s mini CEO, remains at chairman e de Quimica lithium, potash, revision to former took charg Sociedad of . ’s siege. who ucer r , n-law SQM prod unde son-i inhac Contesse, . een r De Solm e more open a company the Chilean allegations d to have But unde iodine, is has becom process betw centre of any is allege company agers are nitrates and an arbitration active since May the comp . On the last year, the with the press. Man Separately, has been On one side, bribery of politicians Salar de company gs CORFO that SQM the the in its dealin a relations and the SQM and d the world FO alleging market engaged in s to lose its leases at medi from aroun rpaying drilled in , with COR at below the t retal the products other it stand accusations of unde on 2014 ed journalists papers including quen sold oraci ly receiv subse has y Corp as and deliberate Atacama amid opment agenc months, from Economist as well e earnings id fees. devel in recent Chile the value to reduc g $8.9m in unpa ucción de rent to state Times and owin lease and de la Prod Financial payments, originally agreed to 2km2 ) gically. de Fomento cation. r tack strate hatches this publi 0 ha (819. The mine also changed h that it would (CORFO). than batten down the FO’s 81,92 , with SQM has r , the manage COR s in the salar in 1993 to d in late Marc lithium But rathe the world ding It announce seek to expand its itself off from ing a philosophy mineral claimbe calculated accor an time and shut to d the Chile junior for the first is implement Gorbachev’s, with rental fees ess beyon ng company to busin to mini al ilar ction re with k centr dissim extra change not and a strategic rethin a joint ventu ., it has taken a 50% border. In cy icas Corp transparen of the Lithium Amerra Exar SA, owner , Northern stake in Mine z project in Salta Olaro Cauchari as “a Cauchari Argentina. described De Solminhacnt to our [current] leme clear comp how and ”. operations ology, know e project in techn the “We have a competitiv to develop cteristics of these experience chara given the Cauchari ation he added. resources,” that the CORFO arbitrr , SQM Confident work out in its favou tina is an will into Argen procedure that the move sed to risk has insisted as oppo expansion exercise in n with nt. uctio geme prod our mana tina. to increase ct in Argen “We plan rd to nt of the proje the developme time, we look forwa be able and same And at the ences with CORFO solving differ
rm itself king to refo gations, jor is loo of alle lithium ma from a number pany’s battled the com fallout The em tes from ls with the orter, wri Rep as it dea k, Cormic its lithium le. to expand Myles Mc in northern Chi as it looks its message operations n capacity. t leader, productio then Sovie
38
and carbonate
at the facilities production hydroxide
Salar del
ern Chile. in north Carmen
Support from Mario’s family has been essential to him pursuing his passion.
“I have lived my entire life in María Elena. As a little boy I saw how all of the town’s families enjoyed this tradition to leave the old year behind,” remarked Mario. “In 9th grade, in art class, they taught me how to make masks. I began to enhance them and incorporate new materials that have brought me to the results you see today. I never set out to make these figurines. Things just kind of fell into place.”
Each November, Mario starts to gather materials and, with the help of his close friend and artistic partner, “El Pato”, outlines the logistics of the creation. Now his three grandchildren have the pleasure of choosing the character.
For him, this technique is an art that started with a simple childhood hobby and became a vital passion. That is how his inner circle sees it, especially his wife, María Peña, who has supported all his art projects throughout their 26 years of marriage.
“His talent went beyond the town and reached Calama, where 19 of his pieces are displayed in that city’s Museo Parque El Loa.”
Their four children: Gabriel (25), Nicole (22), Angie (19) and Scarlett (16), have been faithful witnesses of Mario’s artistic evolution. He would entertain them by making life size monos of their favorite superheros or cartoon characters.
I
SQM’s lithium
Mario Torres in the midst of his creative process.
“Young people seek me out to help them create carts for their summer Olympiads; I helped make the Cruz del Calvario used in the traditional Tirana chica festivities and today I am working on a replica of the chapel that will be installed in the mausoleum of the town’s priest.”
With his current expertise, the entire process takes him around one month, working four to eight hours each day. He does not make a sketch or drawing of the character; instead, Mario uses his own body to calculate dimensions. First, he makes a wire mold, over which he pastes pieces of paper to form the desired shape. Once the glue has dried, he paints it. The tradition is slowly being lost; however, he is hopeful that the new generations of his family and the town’s youth can preserve the custom. “In 2007, I won a Fosis grant and SQM donated space for me to teach classes and set up my workshop. There, I taught some very talented kids who I now see carrying on the tradition. When I die, I will have left a legacy because this tradition will live on in the town,” concludes the operator artist from Coya Sur.
May 2016
RALS AL MINE
INDUSTRI
Henry Sanderson, a journalist at The Financial Times, listens carefully to an explanation from Enrique Peña, Evaporation Pond Superintendent at the Salar de Atacama. Rocío Montes from El País helped band flamingos at Puilar Lagoon.
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SQM today
julio 2016
5
07 Cover
Cover 07
In Chile, the percentage of women working in the mining industry averages 9.6%. SQM surpasses this average with 16%.
THE LEADING LADIES OF SUR VIEJO By Claudio Álvarez y Camila Villarroel
Renata, Marcela, Carla and Patricia, four engineers originally from northern Chile, play a key role in the production process at the Nueva Victoria solar evaporation ponds. In addition to their commitment and professional excellence, they are shining examples of the increased involvement of women at SQM.
Carla Santander, Patricia Ibáñez, Aroldo Aguilera, Ramón Triviño, Renata Crisosto and Cristian Cabezas, part of the Sur Viejo team at work.
The four engineers are in charge of operations for 71 solar evaporation ponds in Sur Viejo, 15 kilometers from the Nueva Victoria iodine facility. The area is the size of nearly 829 regulation soccer fields and contains ponds rich in sodium and potassium nitrate salts that give them the appearance of crystalline turquoise waters. The precipitated salts are then sent to the NPT3 plant in Coya Sur to produce high-purity potassium nitrate one of SQM’s star products and the foundation for its specialty fertilizers, where our Company is a world leader.
Over the last decade, SQM has seen an increase of 6.7% in its female workforce, in positions ranging from operators, plant managers, laboratory analysts, risk prevention specialists, communications staff and administrative personnel in HR, executive and administrative areas.
Through a leaching process at Nueva Victoria’s Western Mine, minerals are decanted from piles of caliche ore and are then transferred as a liquid solution to the Nueva Victoria plant. Here, iodine and the rest of the salts sodium and potassium nitrate travel to the ponds in Sur Viejo, where they are concentrated and precipitated through the solar evaporation process.
de Valdivia, Antofagasta, María Elena, Pampa Blanca and Coya Sur. She comments that her time at Nueva Victoria has been one of her best experiences: “I like my work and the relationship I have with my female coworkers is very comfortable. We support each other in everything.”
A weekly schedule of solution transfer is executed by the pond operations team under strict chemical and pond maintenance controls in order to ensure the necessary balances of quality and quantity to satisfy production needs. Renata, Marcela, Carla and Patricia must ensure compliance with all stages of this process performed by the Office of the Superintendency of Pond Operations. Carla Santander is a process engineer; Patricia Ibáñez a studies engineer; and Marcela Fernández and Renata Crisosto, are heads of operations. All four have excelled in a male-dominated environment. Their thoroughness, management abilities and people skills have made a valuable contribution to the evaporation pond’s positive achievements in 2015: a 25% increase in solution entering the ponds, a 26% increase in salts transported to Coya Sur and construction of 19 new evaporation ponds. They are the only women in this area at the Company. During their shifts, they take a moment to chat and “catch up” on personal and work related issues. Patricia has a degree in chemical engineering from Universidad Católica del Norte. She has the most experience of the group of four women and advises them on some topics. She has been at the Company for 21 years and has worked at Pedro
6
SQM today
Marcela Fernández has a degree in chemical engineering from Universidad Católica del Norte, and confirms that she has felt appreciated for her capacities since she started working at Soqui. “I have always been given the opportunity to be heard, and they have not treated me differently because I am a woman,” she asserts. “On the other hand, the camaraderie and support of my coworkers, both men and women, have been key elements for me to enjoy this job.” Carla Santander has a degree in chemical engineering from Universidad de Antofagasta and agrees with her coworkers. “Generally, people think that it is hard for a woman to work with men, but in my case it has been a very good experience,” she comments. “The men I work with are gentlemen and they even tend to be protective and very concerned about us.” Renata and Marcela almost happened into their positions on the operations team, recalls José Miguel Varela, the Superintendent of Pond Operations: “The managers at that time were on vacation and they had to step up and take charge. They related well with the personnel and got the job done. They did a very good job and then came a series of temporary positions and then they were offered the chance to be managers.”
Renata Crisosto speaks with jib crane truck driver Edward Gutiérrez to plan the day’s work.
Carla and Patricia together with pond operator Ramón Triviño.
The Pond Operations team currently has an evaporation surface area of 6,318,000 square meters, which the Company plans to increase by 1,160,000 square meters, or 19%, in 2016. This expansion will boost production by 114,000 tons of nitrate/year.
Engineers Carla Santander and Marcela Fernández at work.
Some of the sentences that the operators use to respectfully refer to this group of female leaders personified in Renata Crisosto, are: “I only listen to her because she’s my boss. Not even my wife orders me around.”; “Boss, you take it out on me at work because you don’t boss anyone around at home.” Renata, operations manager, has a degree in chemical engineering from Universidad Católica del Norte; she has worked at SQM for almost five years and tells us that she had second thoughts about accepting a managerial position. “When they brought up the promotion, I hesitated a bit despite the good relationship I had with the workers. In mining, women do not generally hold important positions, but that is what ultimately motivated me to take on this challenge. Today, I am proud of this opportunity and see it as recognition of my capacities, not my gender.” Decades ago, there was a myth that the presence of women at a mine was bad luck, a legend that reality is slowly proving wrong: ten years ago SQM began to see a sustained increase in its female workforce. Currently, 670 women work at the Company, representing 16% of all employees at SQM. This figure is well above the average for the Chilean mining industry of 9.6%.
july 2016
7
08 My other self
09 Top 100
RUN, MARIO, RUN...
SQM RECEIVES AWARD FOR GREATEST VALUE CREATION IN 2015
By Carolina García-Huidobro
Mario Salgado has worked at Soqui for 43 years. And over half of that time he has bee¬n a long distance runner. Outside the office, no matter where he is, this deputy payroll manager puts on his running shoes and takes off. Here he tells us how and why he discovered this sport, which has stolen a few hours of sleep but added years to his life.
Mario knows SQM like the back of his hand. Recently married, he started working at the Victoria Nitrates Office on November 6, 1972. In search of better job prospects, he was just 20 years old and was bubbling with energy to work. With the enthusiasm of youth, he asked around and showed up at the Victoria administrative offices without knowing anyone to offer his accounting services. His plan worked and his story with this Company began: first in Victoria in charge of bookkeeping for the company store; then in María Elena, where he worked as an internal auditor for several years; after that in Antofagasta in charge of the treasury department and finally in Santiago where he led the foreign trade department; then the insurance department for SQM and after that, since 2001, as deputy payroll manager.” Those years in María Elena were very special to Mario. “We lived in a community and played a lot of sports; there I discovered tennis and played every day in the hot sun, but I loved it,” he recalls. He is not a fan of team sports because he cannot stand fouls and unsportsmanlike conduct. “A reaction like what we see from [Chilean soccer star] Gary [Medel] is nothing compared to what I could come up with,” he says half-jokingly, half-serious. He prefers individual sports. And running is the sport he has been most passionate about for the last 20 years. “It is a sport that I can do at any time and in any place. That is why I stopped playing tennis because it took a lot of time, a court and someone to play with; running is less complicated.” In the early 90s, having relocated to Santiago, he was working during the day and studying at night. With less time and no tennis, I started to gain weight. “I gained four kilos, and was uncomfortable. My clothes were tight and I tired easily,” he recalls. “That is why I began to run; at first, I would run about five blocks along a boulevard in San Bernardo, close to my house. In the beginning, I would run alone and only on the weekends. I approached it like I approach everything in my life: like a challenge. I am very competitive and if one weekend I ran five blocks, the next weekend I had to run seven. I started to improve. Wherever I traveled, I would take my gear and run. That is how I began to increase my distances until I worked my way up to 10K, which I did for about five years.” Shaving off those four kilos was very hard for him. Shaving minutes off his race times not so much. “My body started to get used to it and my physical condition began improving. I would finish and realized I could continue. I remember the first time that I ran a 10K in the Santiago Marathon in 1998...I finished it as if it were nothing.”
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SQM today
After that experience, his daughter and his son-inlaw joined him and later also his son. “Now the four of us run,” he comments happily. “I like that I was able to pass on my enthusiasm and that we run many races together. It’s nice to do it as a family.” When he started to compete, he started to train harder: twice a week while he was in northern Chile, waking up at five in the morning to run a full 10K; and on the weekends he would do 12K at Cerro San Cristóbal in Santiago. In 2012 he started doing 21K. Always as a family. “I remember that I was very tired when I finished but I was happy that I had crossed the finish line with a decent time.” Now, if I go more than a week without running, I feel uncomfortable. “I don’t know why, but it happens. I
remember once when I injured my back and had to stop running for a year. It was terrible. I worked out on an elliptical machine at home.”
The Company received the award in the category of “Greatest Value Creation 2015 in the Raw Materials Sector.” It was included in the Top 100 List that is published annually by Revista Capital and Banco Santander Chile.
Now he has also started hiking several smaller mountains in Chile: Provincia, Pochoco...and still counting... “I don’t do it just for the enjoyment or to work out; I like setting goals, setting times and achieving them.” And, what is your next sports challenge? Doing 21k in less than 1hr 50. Last year, at the Santiago Marathon, I finished in 1hr 53, but this year I finished in 1 hr 56 and was not happy at all about that weaker performance. Now I am training hard to drop my times.
SQM was recognized as one of the top 100 Chilean companies in sales, profitability and value creation in 2015 in the raw materials sector. The award, which was based on its performance in 2015, was given to the Latin American companies that performed best during the period. The ceremony, which was organized by Revista Capital and Santander GCB, recognized our Company in the category of value creation, raw materials sector, for its constant innovation in the different business lines that it develops.
The award was received by CEO Patricio de Solminihac on Thursday, June 23rd at the corporate headquarters of Banco Santander in downtown Santiago. “This recognition is proof that we have chosen the right path, that the work that we do each day is bearing fruit,” Patricio de Solminihac stated.
Roberto Sapag, Director of Diario Financiero; Patricio de Solminihac, CEO of SQM and Sebastián Romero, Head of Corporate and Investment Banking, Santander GCB.
In the piece that Revista Capital published on the award that was given to SQM, the magazine notes that 2015 was a year of important changes for the company. The article mentions M1 because of its notable cost savings and operational transformation towards more efficient management and leadership as well as practices that are more ecological and healthier for all employees. The companies recognized in the different categories include Banco Falabella, CCU, Movistar, Lipigas, Aguas Andinas, Parque Arauco and Banco Santander.
10 The Use of... 19
K
Potassium
K ENERGY Potassium is gaining ground as a vital element in all sectors: as a fertilizer in agriculture, for the development of thermosolar salts in the clean energy industry and in medicine and health given the role that it plays in food supplements and medical treatments.
Do you remember when tennis player Fernando González ate a banana between sets during his matches on the ATP circuit? It wasn’t superstition. It was a practice that German tennis star Boris Becker made popular in the 1990s and it has a scientific basis. This fruit mitigates the loss of salts and minerals, thus helping athletes avoid cramps during long matches. Thanks in part to these tennis stars, most athletes now know that the secret is the banana’s high Vitamin K (potassium) content. Potassium is a powerful source of energy for muscles that are subjected to intense and prolonged efforts. Bananas are rich in potassium because the soil in which they grow requires a great deal of potassium for the plant to develop in optimal conditions. But that is not the only attribute of potassium. In the form of iodide or iodate (KL), it is used in human and animal nutrition, the manufacture of polymers and pharmaceutical products, in sulfate (K2SO4) as a fertilizer and in hydroxide (KOH) for making soaps. Various potassium compounds are also used in the glass, ceramics and metallurgy industries.
Potassium makes fruits sweeter because it transports the sucroses and glucoses generated in photosynthesis from the leaves to the fruit.
Discovered in 1807 by British chemist and inventor Sir Humphry Davy, this whitesilver alkaline element is playing an increasingly vital role in agriculture and more developed industries. Potassium is one of the primary macronutrients that are essential for the survival of plants: it is very important for maintaining chemical equilibrium in soil, for the growth of plants and their resistance to pests, infestations and frosts. When it is lacking, plants grow and flower less and crops are less abundant. One of potassium’s many attributes as a fertilizing element is its capacity to produce sweeter fruits thanks to its role as a carbohydrate translocator. It transports the sucroses and glucoses generated through photosynthesis from the leaves to the fruit. Potassium is one of the most important elements for the development of animal and plant life, and SQM is the leading producer of potassium nitrate (KNO3) in the world, which it creates through a unique production process that involves minimal intervention in the product.
EBananas are a source of high concentrations of potassium, which helps athletes mitigate the loss of salts and minerals and thus avoid cramps.
Potassium nitrate is used frequently by SQM in manufacturing its fertilizers.
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11 Global Clients
13 On Site THE WORK OF SEEKING RICHES
Lays Potato Chips
CHILE FLAVORED
By Soledad Meléndez y Alvaro Cifuentes
By Soledad Meléndez
You could say that this famous brand’s potato chips, which we see on the shelves in our supermarkets, have a touch of northern Chile. For the past 11 years, Mexico’s Francisco Chapas, an important provider of the raw material for this snack food, has used SQM fertilizers on his tubers.
Francisco Chapas, Manager of Agrojaba, in the potato fields.
Francisco Chapas is the Manager of the company Agrojaba, a potato producer in the state of Nuevo León in northeastern Mexico that provides potatoes to Lays. He has used SQM potassium nitrate on his crops for over a decade and works alongside our team of agronomists in order to continually improve his product.
This business relationship began in 2005 when SQM acquired the Mexican fertilizer company with which Agrojaba was working on physical blends that were used as the basis for fertilization. Teamwork and the support of SQM agronomists played a key role in the commercial connection.
Agrojaba owns 500 hectares that are used to produce crops that include the raw materials for this famous potato chip brand.
“We have had excellent results with SQM products, mainly with the development of special formulas that we create together which have played a key role in the quality and quantity produced,” Chapa says. “Our yield per hectare has doubled.”
The challenge is to harvest top quality product in a desert environment. As such, he uses drip irrigation and specialty fertilizers that play a key role in optimizing the use of water and increasing the absorption of specialty nutrients nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium (NPK).
Francisco Chapas notes that a cornerstone of this relationship is SQM’s technical advising, which contributed to the development of a completely new production system for his crops, drip fertirrigation. “This method was new to us, and we developed it with SQM technicians over a period of several years,” he explains. “Today we have a nutrition program that has allowed us to achieve yields that seemed out of reach when we were using other production methods.” His business has focused on the production of raw materials for the food industry, and he has specialized in meeting the needs of his main client, the renowned potato chip brand Lays, with which he has worked for 15 years.
The 500 hectares in the state of Nuevo León in northeastern Mexico use fertirrigation with products from our Company.
“Based on the trust that we have in SQM, we are now seeking out new alternatives and technologies that will allow us to achieve more efficient crop nutrition. Quality is not an issue the results are proof of that,” Chapa says.
12 Northern Memory Ernesto “Chino” Godoy
TO THE BEAT OF THE PAMPA This photograph was taken in 1957 in the town of María Elena. The image portrays the family of Ernesto “Chino” Godoy, a musician and employee of our Company for over 45 years. “The photograph of me and my parents was taken after a parade. My mother, Ruth Ugarte Díaz, told me that the entire family was in the picture because she was pregnant with my younger brother at the time.” Ernesto Godoy Ugarte, who proudly shares his father’s name, worked as an A operator in the solar evaporation ponds in Coya Sur.
Finding gold, silver, copper or zinc can be like finding a needle in a haystack, but it shouldn’t be. Today technology and knowledge allow minerals to be sought out with greater likelihood of success. We accompanied a caravan of SQM geologists on an exploration mission. The caravan leaves at 8:30 a.m. to travel 280 km north of the capital of Region II to the banks of the Loa River in the municipality of María Elena. That is where the area known as the Oasis of Antofagasta is found along with the driest area of the Atacama Desert, Quillagua. The area is assigned to José Tapia Bugueño, a Senior Geologist tasked with marking possible targets for future explorations. During the day, he and his team face the temperature variations that are unique to the desert, with highs of up to 35° during the summer and drastically colder conditions at night. José Tapia focuses on this area for seven or eight days, touring a block of 318,450 hectares. He studies them each year, averaging 27,000 hectares per month. The team takes geochemical samples that help to identify the main “vein” of copper (Cu), molybdenum (Mo), gold (Au), silver (Ag) and zinc (Zn). “We cover a lot of ground in order to gather geological data and take samples,” José explains. “They then go through a crusher in Pedro de Valdivia for internal analysis. When attractive values are found, they are sent to an external lab to corroborate the information and determine the chemical grades of the main elements.” This surface work that the geologist describes allows for “exploration targets” to be identified, which could be a copper deposit or gold or zinc structure. From there, drilling begins in the areas marked for the extraction of samples. This procedure is conducted using a wagon drill that reaches up to 200 meters. The samples obtained are called cuttings (small rock fragments), which are studied by geologists to identify their minerology, rock type and alterations.
José Tapia looks for samples in the block of 318,450 hectares that he covers along with his coworkers.
The diamond driller is also used. Like the wagon, it helps provide ongoing observation opportunities underground and recovers samples of varying diameters. This allows technicians to examine evidence of various geological events such as faults or quartz veinlets. Both machines are owned by SQM and are used in the context of a caravan with mobile homes run by drilling geologists and the Diamond Geology team.
Technology is a great ally in geological research work. The team receives support from office staff members who download information through Google. The images are then added to the program Get Up in order to develop maps with the corresponding coordinates.
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He says that the presence of animal remains has surprised him the most. “We have found the remains of the pack animals used during the height of the nitrates era, the animals that were used on the roads that crossed the entire desert from the coast. There is a line with skeletons of this species that have been preserved by the extreme desert conditions and absence of water.” José joined the company in 1995 when the first metal exploration activities began in Region III. Sporadic searches were conducted until 2008, when the Mining Exploration Unit was created as part of a new drive to develop generative geology and diversify the search areas in SQM’s mining properties in the Tarapacá and Antofagasta regions. In doing so, SQM expanded its goals to include metal mining such as copper, gold and zinc. In the context of this initiative, SQM discovered the Antucoya copper deposit, which Antofagasta Minerals later acquired.
Called “El Chino” by his parents, he was born in Copiapó but came to the pampa at age 15 thanks to the encouragement of one of his aunts. He started to talk about his passion for music, which led him to form many musical and artistic groups in the area including the military band Cuadro Blanco and the fondly remembered trio “Los Zafiros.” He also founded the dance group “Norte 6” and the student band “Los Pampas” in Antofagasta, which was directed by another renowned pampa resident, Jorge Hiche. “My father was involved with activities related to the pampa and music right up until he died. In fact, in November 1994, he and Jorge Hiche founded the Centro Hijos y Amigos de María Elena. I have amazing memories of him. He taught us values and to love music and family.”
In spite of his years of experience, José continues to be surprised by the immensity of the desert. At one point, his truck became stuck in the Cerros de Angostura area to the northeast of Quillagua. It was a remote and solitary area, and he and his team had to spend nearly five hours there trying to free the vehicle. He remembers that they managed to do so at around 7 p.m., which meant that they had to drive through the very dark night on poorly maintained roads. Happily, they managed to reach María Elena safely.
In this time in the pampa, José Tapia, has come across the remains of pack animals from the heyday of the nitrates industry that crossed the entire desert. José, with the team of geologists, reviewing and classifying the geochemical samples.
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In Focus 14
14 In Focus SQM’S SOCCER CRAZE
SQM RECOGNIZES EXCELLENCE
Over a period of three months, nearly 200 Tocopilla employees and contractors showcased their physical talent and skills during the first “SQM Port Cup.” The 2016 competition was organized by the workers themselves and featured 15 teams and 57 matches.
Over 50 employees received awards at ceremonies held at all of the Company’s sites and offices. Congratulations to all of the winners and their teams!
“Apco” won the tournament, and “Marcasa” and “Los Estibadores” placed second and third, respectively. Meanwhile, in Santiago, the second version of the SQM Santiago soccer championship was played. It featured six teams with over 70 employees. The team “Maxisecos” won, leaving “Si hay potasio no hay litio” in second place. Both competitions focused on sportsmanship and the development of relationships among employees.
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1. The finalists’ sense of fair play was reflected at the awards ceremony and the third half. 2. Rodrigo Villarroel in action. He was the high scorer in the tournament, with 27 goals. 3. Juan Pablo Gómez controls the ball. Thanks to its players’ consistency, the team “Maxisecos” took home the grand prize in the Santiago soccer tournament.
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4. “Los estibadores” placed third. Eduardo Rivera (in the green jersey) won the “Team Spirit” award. 5. Ignacio Majluf (Maxisecos) deflected many shots throughout the tournament. 6. Maxisecos dominated, performing well from the beginning of the tourney to the end. 7. Bonus Track: Alexis Sánchez didn’t play in the SQM Port Cup, but he did train for the Americas Cup on SQM fields, spending time with community members and showing his characteristic humility and affection for Tocopilla.
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8. Face-off, Rodrigo Kammerer (forward) and Daniel Pizarro (goalie); one of the many great images of the SQM Santiago soccer championship.
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16 Innovasoqui
15 Presidential Tocopilla THE NEW CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD VISITS TOCOPILLA
Prilling Plant
MADE IN SOQUI By Claudio Álvarez
By Claudio Álvarez
This strategic plant in which precise form and volume are given to SQM fertilizers represented a challenge to our company’s engineers. Its predecessors in Pedro de Valdivia and María Elena were in service for 80 years, and this technological milestone which opened in 2006 in Coya Sur has been a key part of the considerable increase in nitrate production and the reduction of operating costs.
In his first field visit as the company’s top official, Eugenio Ponce toured the port and met with employees and executives. He thanked them for the great commitment to the company that they displayed when he was Senior Commercial Vice President and underscored the decisive role that the port has played for SQM.
The location chosen for launching this new professional challenge was the Port of Tocopilla, a site to which he was connected for 15 years. He stated that the operation also has strategic importance for the Company’s overall results. SQM’s new chairman toured the Bulk Products and Quality Control Land Operations facilities, where employees had a chance to tell him what they have thought of the cultural transformation of M1, the progress made and upcoming challenges. At Pier 5, Ponce met with operators while they loaded solar salts. At Field 9, he learned about the progress made on the installation of a new storehouse and transport belt as part of an effort to increase storage of bulk products, decrease suspended particles and improve product handling. At the end of the tour, the port management team invited the new chairman to a lunch at the directors’ house, where they were joined by supervisors and agents of change in order to wish Ponce the best in this new role. “For me it is very meaningful that my first site visit as Chairman of the Board is taking place at Tocopilla,” he said. “The port is a neuralgic part of SQM: 90% of our products leave this terminal for distribution around the world. This port and those that we operate abroad represent the vision and will that this Company has had to go out into the world to open international markets. My commitment is to continue to strengthen this and other operations of the Company,” the new Chairman of the Board stated.
Foreign Mission With over 35 years of experience at the executive level for the Company, Eugenio Ponce has a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the five lines of business and major achievements in regard to technological development and internationalization. He understands in detail how the entire operation works. He has served as Sales Manager, Nitrates and Iodine Senior Vice President and, most recently, as Senior Commercial Vice President. He has always actively participated in the production, logistics, distribution and sale of each of SQM’s products. A mechanical engineer by profession, he has played a decisive role in the internationalization of SQM since he joined the company in 1981. During his first year, he visited the New York, London, Madrid and Antwerp offices through which the company focused on streamlining and modernizing the commercial area. This involved cutting costs and selling assets in major European capitals where Soqui had offices. The Company moved to port cities because logistics and the opening of new markets would be key in the chain of production. It was a decisive shift that quickly allowed the Company to obtain positive results. His interest in going out into the world and getting in touch with client needs on all six continents led him to take on an international presence that has strengthened SQM’s networks as a leader in specialty fertilizers. He has participated actively in the International Fertilizer Industry Association since 1996, holding the position of Vice President, and has thus been invited to present at the main international fora on the role of fertilizers in global food production. Between 1999 and 2016, Eugenio Ponce was responsible for all international affiliates and the process of selling specialty fertilizers, iodine, potassium and lithium in the over 110 countries to which these products are exported. The Tocopilla team received Eugenio Ponce as just another member of the team given his long history with the port.
You can see the Coya Sur site with its imposing prilling tower from Route 5 North, which connects Quillagua and Antofagasta. Given its shape and height (65 m), it sometimes seems like an airport traffic tower in the immensity of the pampa. This structure is an essential part of the prilling plant which produces sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate, both prilled, which is similar in appearance to a small white breath mint. The production process begins in the feeder hoppers, where the crystals or nitrates brought in from the storage fields arrive. They present 5% humidity upon arrival. Following the production line, the raw material is sent to a revolving drying area, which decreases the humidity levels to 0.02%. Once dry, these crystals travel on conveyor belts to the fusion plant heaters, where the nitrates will be melted at temperatures of nearly 400 degrees so that they change from solid to liquid state. This is the point at which the prilling tower comes into play. The melted nitrate, now in liquid state, is pumped directly into four prill pot containers located on the top of the structure, which have 1,800 holes each. When the product reaches this surface, it drains through the holes, which creates a shower or irrigation effect. As it falls approximately 15 floors, each drop is aerated and thus cools until it solidifies. The result is prilled nitrate. The prilled form presents advantages for agricultural application because it allows for direct delivery in precise doses to the plants. From a logistical perspective, prill is easier to transport because, unlike crystallized nitrate, it does not compact or crystallize easily at a specific temperature or humidity level. This plant became operational during the second half of 2006. Its technology, innovation and engineering were developed by SQM professionals, and it has allowed the company to replace the 30 yearold plant at Pedro de Valdivia and to cut operations at the 40 year old plant at María Elena by half. This was a decisive step forward because the age of the plants resulted in constant increases in operating costs. Those costs have dropped by 50% through the operation of the Coya Sur prill plant.
SQM’s team at Tocopilla welcomed Eugenio Ponce like one of their own because of his long track record with the port.
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The March 2006 launch was key for the increased production of nitrates and reduction of operating costs.
Continual Improvement During the start-up period a decade ago, the plant produced 160,000 tons of nitrates. A year later, it recorded an increase of 40,000 tons. “The team of workers in this area has learned more about the operation to the point that we are completely familiar with every step,” remarks Luis Vargas, the plant chief. “We changed some procedures and focused on working under a philosophy of continual improvement, which brought us to surpass the 250,000 ton barrier.” The implementation of M1 in this area has led to a corporate commitment with a level dose of enthusiasm among employees and operators. Through a series of proposals initiated and executed by the employees themselves, the results are evident: production has reached 300,000 tons per year. “The construction of the plant marked a turning point for us and the Company,” remarks Plant Chief Lino Rivas, who has worked at Pedro de Valdivia, María Elena and Coya Sur. “The operation of old plants depended more on people and everything was done on site. Now we have cutting edge technology and can give continuity to the production process, operating remotely from the control room.” “The plant is a Ferrari compared to similar facilities. I would go so far as to say that it is the best on this continent,” Luis Vargas adds.
KNO3 KNO3
KNO3
KNO3
KNO3
KNO3
50%
The increase in potassium nitrate and sodium nitrate production at the Coya Sur prilling plant since it went into operation (2007).
KNO3 KNO3 KNO3
KNO3
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18 Community Notes
17 Community Notes MAGDALENA OF QUILLAGUA
By Soledad Meléndez y Claudio Álvarez
Over three years ago, the directors of the Atacama Tierra Fértil Program knocked on her door and radically changed Magdalena Núñez’s life. She has gone from homemaker to President of the Hydroponic Rural Growers Cooperative and manager of the Quillagua greenhouse. This group is now producing up to 4,000 heads of lettuce in the driest desert in the world, and is opening markets throughout the Antofagasta Region.
Various family circumstances led her and her husband to move to Quillagua from Iquique five years ago. It was a change that brought many surprises, but she never imagined that opportunity would literally come knocking on her door. “One summer day in 2013, I was hosting some of our relatives when someone knocked on the door. It was the directors of the Atacama Tierra Fértil Program, who came to ask if someone from our family wanted to join the hydroponic growing initiative in Quillagua,” Magdalena recalls. “My son couldn’t do it, and I knew I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. There aren’t too many jobs here, so I knew I had to take on the challenge.” A little over three years later, this native of northern Chile has become the President of the Hydroponic Rural Growers Cooperative, which represents 12 local farmers. Magdalena didn’t know anything about farming, but she had a lot of willingness to learn and experience as a social leader. Her husband, Héctor Hoyos, found her enthusiasm contagious and became her main partner in the small business that she has created. They mainly grow lettuce, along with some strawberries and tomatoes.
Don Francisco:
Together with SQM, the farming cooperative that Magdalena now leads has built a 1,000 m2 greenhouse that uses a photovoltaic energy system. One year after its implementation, they were producing an average of 4,000 heads of lettuce per month. Every morning, Magdalena begins her work in the greenhouse at 8:00 a.m. She makes sure that the water is running well in the plant beds and that they are in optimal condition for the lettuce. She checks to see if there is enough water in the inverse osmosis tank. She checks the seeds, measures the perimeter of the beds and ensures that the sea salt ph is adequate for conducting electricity. “I have completely dedicated myself to this project,” Magdalena says. She initially had no knowledge of farming, let alone hydroponics. “Thanks to the technical advising provided by the SQM Tierra Fértil Program agronomists, I have been fully trained in the process,” she says today. “I learned by working. I went from having nothing to do with any of this to achieving solid levels of lettuce production. That has made me and the other farmers very happy. We have even been able to supply local supermarkets and food centers at mining sites, where the workers ask for the lettuce from our greenhouse.”
They have been granted a health permit that allows them to enter other markets and meet demand that goes beyond Quillagua. They may even soon supply a major supermarket chain in Calama using lettuce from Quillagua. This major step could get the green light thanks to an alliance between the farming cooperative, SQM and Sercotec through the Business Development Fund, which provides resources for a period of three years. Magdalena never imagined that she would work in hydroponic farming or that this would become the household’s main source of income when her husband was laid off. “My husband currently does not have stable work, and the greenhouse is a major source of income in addition to the work that he does in vulcanization,” she says. “It gives us security. Prior to this experience, I thought that married women shouldn’t work outside of the home, but this project changed my life. I have a different outlook now and I am very happy with these achievements.”
A GIANT VISITS THE PAMPA By Tamara Rebolledo
The famous Chilean TV personality toured the María Elena and Coya Sur facilities to record his cultural program “Usted no conoce a Chile (You Don’t Know Chile).” The informal visit included conversations between Mario Kreutzberger and executives and workers so that he could learn about the immense transformation that the Chilean nitrates industry has undergone over the past 35 years. “La primera vez que visité esta faena sólo me entregaron un casco y ahora nos equiparon completos, literalmente de pies a cabeza; lo que evidencia que el crecimiento de la empresa va apalancado de la seguridad”, señaló Don Francisco, el animador chileno, y latinoamericano, más famoso de la televisión hispano parlante. Después de 35 años volvió para recorrer María Elena y Coya Sur con el objetivo de grabar los mismos lugares que inmortalizó en los años 80 para “Sábado Gigante”. Esta vez, para la segunda temporada de su programa cultural “Usted no reconoce a Chile”, espacio que es transmitido por Canal 13.
At the end of the tour, “Don Francisco” seemed particularly impressed when he listened to Carlos Díaz’s story about how the nitrates business was reinvented -despite the fact that the mineral was in clear decline- through its transformation into potassium nitrate, leading to the production of specialty fertilizers. The renowned TV host also congratulated the employees for developing a specialty and ensuring that their children study, explaining that the progress that Chile has made is visible in the pampa.
Coya Sur is the neuralgic center of modernization initiated by Soqui in the 1980s. The great invention of our engineers and chemists started here in 1985: potassium nitrate. It was a completely new process that took years to develop, but it led to the reinvention of nitrates and SQM’s current world leadership in the specialty fertilizer market.
Evidenciar los cambios de Chile y su gente, es el objetivo de este coloso del entretenimiento de la televisión hispana. Por parte de nuestra Compañía, fue recibido por Carlos Díaz Ortiz, vicepresidente Nitratos Yodo y un grupo de trabajadores, quienes le contaron y mostraron los actuales métodos productivos de SQM.
Agronomist Francisco Martínez, Magdalena Núñez and Eduardo Chia of SQM.
Don Francisco and Carlos Díaz had an interesting conversation about the process of reinventing the nitrates industry that SQM has begun. Magdalena takes very careful care of her lettuce crop.
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Don Francisco and journalist Bárbara Rebolledo spoke with employees from various areas.
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20 Mining for Fun
19 Plants Around the Globe To strengthen its presence in the European market:
SQM DISEMBARKS IN HOLLAND
By Álvaro Cifuentes y Carolina García Huidobro
Terneuzen is now the main European headquarters for the non-metallic mining company. The port will receive SQM’s products mainly fertilizers to be processed and then distributed to the rest of Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. The Dutch city of Terneuzen inaugurated the new port that SQM will use to distribute more than 250,000 MT of products arriving from Chile. Over 250 people attended the ribbon cutting ceremony, including the city’s mayor and executives from several European companies that do business with SQM. This is the second largest port terminal managed by the non metallic mining company. The largest is located in Tocopilla, Chile. The new port will also be home to a plant to manufacture water soluble fertilizers. “This is a strategic decision,” confirms Frank Biot, SQM’s Potassium and Nitrates Commercial Senior Vice President, in his speech to dedicate the new facilities. “SQM’s European headquarters were in London until 1985, and were then relocated to Antwerp. After so many years in Belgium, moving our international logistics to this port, this community and this country is undoubtedly a major challenge.”
products will be stored at warehouses at the new logistics terminal to ensure distribution to 16 of the Company’s 25 commercial offices around the world. This project was a decision made by SQM and Vlaeynatie, its logistics partner in the Old World. Both ultimately decided that Terneuzen offered better conditions to meet the challenge of being the Company’s new European business hub. A plant was built next to the port, the non-metallic mining company’s sixteenth plant in the world, to mix water soluble fertilizers, mainly for the European market. As traditionally done by SQM, this new plant,
Over 250,000 MT of products arriving from Chile will be distributed from the port in Terneuzen, Holland.
known as Plantacote, was located near our customers so we can get to know their needs and supply them with the right formulas as quickly as possible. The new terminal has a strong focus on the fertilizer area since the specialty plant nutrition business line reported 7% growth this year, driven mainly by increased demand for drip irrigation in order to make farmland more productive and care for the increasingly scarce water supply.
In his speech, Frank Biot reminded guests how the European office had only ten employees and billed around 25 million euros a year in the mid eighties. “Last year, our business volume reached almost 400 million euros. Thirty years ago, SQM did business in 40 countries; currently, our products reach more than 110 destinations on six continents.”
Frank Biot, Potassium and Nitrates Senior Commercial Vice President at SQM highlighted the company’s development over the past 48 years.
The new headquarters in Terneuzen will receive products from SQM’s five business lines (specialty plant nutrition, iodine and derivatives, lithium and derivatives, industrial chemicals and potassium). These
SEARCH AND WIN... 1. What international publication featured SQM’s business? 2. One of the figurines or “monos” in the First Person section is… 3. The employee featured in the At Work section is a… 4. In what European city is SQM’s new logistics terminal located?
THE WINNER OF THE SECOND WORD SEARCH COMPETITION Alexander Antonio Pastén Vigorena, age 7, is in Grade 2 at Colegio Net-
land Antofagasta. He is also the winner of the second edition of the Word Search competition, and has been awarded an official t-shirt of the Two Time Champions of the Americas to celebrate Chile’s recent win at the international Americas Cup tournament. Alexander is shown here with his parents, Nibaldo Pastén Silva, a maintenance programmer from the Planning Engineering Area, and Karen Vigorena Riquelme. In the photo, he is happily wearing his red Chile team jersey, showing what a great fan he is before heading off to sleep with his soccer ball, which is always by his side. He shares a passion for the sport with his father, who always roots for his beloved Cobreloa. Alexander’s favorite member of the national squad is team captain Claudio Bravo and he dreams of traveling to watch a match.
Congratulations, Alexander! What are you waiting for? Give it a try!
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SQM today
Cut here and submit…
Fun for Kids
5. What was the first SQM facility visited by the new chairman of the board? 6. Which well known Chilean TV personality visited Coya Sur? 7. Potassium makes fruit… 8. Which famous snack food is made with produce grown by Francisco Chapas? 9. What is the name of the lithium project that SQM will develop in Argentina? Children through age 14 may participate. Find nine answers in the word search and submit the puzzle along with your personal information to the Human Resources office at your site by Friday, September 23rd. You could win a Chilean soccer jersey or set of Alex paints.
D L I M A I L G D P T S Z V E O T E M A
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R A P I T A R T N T S I D U L C E S E H
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A A C M A O E O A I C N E K D I O J A L
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I B A S E R L A S L E C A R J A L L E R
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This is one of the 447 Andean flamingo chicks (Phoenicorparrus andinus) that were carefully banded this season. The banding program has been in place forthe last four years in order to track their move¬ments, migration, breeding and feeding. A two-layer plastic band is placed on each chick’s leg. The device is engraved with a unique, four-letter code that enables scientists to continuously monitor and study the behavior of these birds in the Central Andes high plains.
Fotography: Sebastián Utreras
The banding process takes place in the Flamingo National Reserve located in the Puilar Lagoon, which is part of the Soncor Hydrological System in the Salar de Atacama. The initiative is sponsored by the Toconao Atacameña Indigenous Community, SQM and the Antofagasta Regional Office of the National Forestry Corporation (CONAF)¬. It is part of the National Flamingo Conservation Plan and the International High Andean Flamingo Marking Program that brings together Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru.