ATOME PLC (AIM:ATOM) CEO Olivier Mussat talked with Proactive about a landmark milestone for the company’s Villeta green fertilizer project in Paraguay.
The company has signed its first definitive engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement with Swiss firm Casale S.A. Mussat explained that this agreement marks the world’s first large-scale green hydrogen fertilizer project to reach the EPC stage, underlining its global relevance.
“It’s significant for us as a company because we’ve announced that we had been working on the front-end engineering and design for more than two years now,” Mussat said, noting the long-term collaboration with Casale.
He highlighted Casale’s industry-leading expertise, describing the firm as the oldest ammonia licensor globally, with the ability to deliver complex, full-chain fertilizer projects. According to Mussat, the partnership serves as a strategic blueprint for Casale’s future growth.
Looking ahead, ATOME aims to reach a final investment decision on the Villeta project by the end of the first half of the year. The company is working to finalise offtake agreements with Yara and complete financial documentation for both debt and equity funding. This includes a $115 million equity commitment from Hy24, with further syndication in progress.
Proactive: Olivier, good to speak with you. You've signed a definitive engineering, procurement and construction contract with Casale S.A. for your Villeta green fertilizer project in Paraguay. What's the significance of today's news?
Olivier Mussat: Good morning, Stephen. Well, it's significant on a number of points. I think the first one, sector-wise, it is very significant in the sense that this is the first large-scale industrial green hydrogen fertilizer project signed ever at the EPC stage. So clearly it has an impact and it's been resonating globally. It has an impact also for our friends at Yara from an offtake point of view, because it gives us a good view on when we will have production in about three years' time. And finally, it's significant for us as a company because obviously we've announced that we had been working on the front-end engineering and design for more than two years now with Casale, which ended last year. We had announced the heads of terms last fall. And so it really showed that we were able to execute and finalise the contract. And obviously now this is the first of a few other contracts coming up.
Proactive: What can you tell us about Casale and the partnership, Olivier?
Olivier Mussat: So, Casale — it’s the oldest ammonia licensor in the world. It's a private Swiss company. I think they've designed about 300 plants since their inception, so clearly they are a leader in the sector. Also, they are one of the most forward-leaning when it comes to technology. What we were very impressed with is the fact that within Casale they have the entire value chain — from ammonia, ammonium nitrate, granulates for calcium nitrate, and so on. So I think it's one of the very few companies globally who have the expertise and the ability to deliver projects like ours. From their point of view, in their future growth, they really saw this as a pathfinder for them — the ability to create a blueprint for their business for the next hundred years.
Proactive: And the next steps on Villeta?
Olivier Mussat: On Villeta itself, as we announced to the market, clearly the intention for us is to reach final investment decision by the end of H1. So the next step, the immediate next step, is working and finalising the heads of term on Yara, like we had with Casale — moving from heads of term to final agreement. And also, on the financing side, moving from what are basically mandates and due diligence discussions on agreed heads of terms — the term sheets are fully agreed — into final documentation. That's on the debt side. On the equity side, we mentioned just a few weeks ago that Hy24, the hydrogen specialist investment fund, was coming with about $115 million. So now we are syndicating the rest of the equity again to reach final investment decision by the end of H1. So we will continue to be very busy, but we are extremely excited because this is the first definitive agreement that the company has signed and shows that we are able to move from heads of term to final agreements.
Proactive: Well, congratulations on today's news. I hope you'll keep us updated on any further progress. Thanks for joining us.