DYNO NOBEL AMERICA Purchases NITROCHEM in Maitland, Ontario - Introduces DYNO NOBEL NITROGEN INC. 

Dyno Nobel America is pleased to announce that, on 29 December 2005, it closed on the purchase of the Nitrochem Corporation nitrogen assets located in Maitland, Ontario.  Nitrochem’s nitrogen assets include three nitric acid plants and two ammonium nitrate plants, all located in Maitland, Ontario. This acquisition is the first one to be made by Dyno Nobel since its sale to a consortium of investors led by Macquarie Bank Limited.

"This operation fits with our strategic vision and is our first AN plant in Canada, " stated Lars Johansen, President of Dyno Nobel America.  These assets will be managed as a new, Canadian company, Dyno Nobel Nitrogen Inc., with Bill Barnett as its President.

In business for over 40 years, Nitrochem has served the nitrogen market in eastern Canada and the northeastern U.S.  Manufactured products include nitric acid, ammonium nitrate (prills and solution) and aqua ammonia, products which are used in the explosive, nylon intermediate, drug, pigment and other industries.   Although it was originally commissioned primarily as a supplier of nitrogen-based fertilizer to the agricultural market, Nitrochem’s products are now directed more to the industrial explosives and merchant nitric acid markets.

Dyno Nobel, a global leader in the commercial explosives industry, has over 3,500 employees including some of the most highly trained blasters in the industry.  With over a million tons of ammonium nitrate capacity and 32 manufacturing facilities on 2 continents (including state-of-the-art initiation systems facilities in the United States, Australia and Mexico), our Engineering and Technology team supports domestic and export product sales as well as the use of our cutting edge technologies around the world. 

The acquisition of the Nitrochem nitrogen assets supports Dyno Nobel’s business objective to “… develop and supply solutions, either as product and services solutions or value in use solutions ... in the world’s major explosives markets” as well as contributing to our vision to “…be the world’s leading explosives company…”