ICL Announces Production and Capacity Expansions in Potash and Phosphates

TEL-AVIV, Israel, March 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Israel Chemicals
Ltd. ("ICL") (TASE: ICL), a multinational fertilizer and specialty chemicals
company, announced today its plans to continue its strategy of expanding
production and capacity of key ICL Fertilizers products as a result of
increased demand and a rise in their profitability.
During the past few years, changes in global agriculture have
significantly affected worldwide fertilizer demand. Consumption of grains for
food and animal feed has outpaced worldwide production, creating a reduction
in cereal inventories. The rapid development of emerging economies, such as
China, India and Brazil, is also increasing demand for high-quality food
while simultaneously reducing the area per capita of arable land available
for agriculture. The emerging demand for biofuels has compounded the
situation by establishing a superfluous demand for fertilizer-intensive
crops, straining world supplies. As a result, the price of many commodities
has risen dramatically, creating a strong incentive to improve crop yields.
After decades of imbalanced fertilization practices in many countries,
farmers are now choosing to add more adequate dosage of potash to their soil.
With rising demand and limited supplies, fertilizer prices, including potash
and phosphate fertilizers, have risen steeply to record highs.
As a result of these factors, the Company is expanding, or considering
plans to expand, production and capacity of the following products:
- Phosphate Rock
-- increase production of phosphate rock by 500 thousand tons during 2008
through utilization of current excess capacity;
-- potential additional increases in phosphate rock production to reach
full capacity utilization of 4.5 million tons depending upon conditions in
the fertilizer market;
-- consideration of a plan to increase phosphate rock capacity by an
additional 600 thousand tons by 2010;
- Phosphoric Acid and Phosphate Fertilizers
-- consideration of a plan to increase capacity of fertilizer grade
phosphoric acid P205 by approximately 40 thousand tons annually;
-- gradual increase in the capacity of phosphate fertilizers by 250
thousand tons during the next four years;
- Potash
-- increase production of potash by 250 thousand tons a year by
increasing carnallite production capacity of Evaporation Pond 3 at the Dead
Sea through the conversion of a portion of the area of one of the Ponds from
salt precipitation to carnallite production. The Company believes that it
will complete the conversion by the end of 2008, with the first carnallite
harvest expected at the beginning of 2009;
-- increase production capacity at the Dead Sea by an additional 250
thousand tons by implementing technological improvements and opening
bottlenecks in existing plants. This additional capacity will be created
gradually through 2011;
-- increase production at its potash mines in Spain and the UK by
approximately 300 thousand tons a year as a result of a program, commenced in
2007, to upgrade equipment at these mines; and
-- consideration of a plan to increase production capacity of potash at
the Dead Sea by an additional 1 million tons over a period of 5 to 8 years,
in addition to the increases mentioned above.
About ICL
ICL is one of the world's leading fertilizer and specialty chemicals
companies. ICL produces approximately a third of the world's bromine and
approximately 10% of its potash. ICL is a leading supplier of fertilizers in
Europe and a major player in specialty fertilizer market segments. One of the
world's most integrated manufacturers and suppliers of phosphate products,
ICL has become the world's leading provider of pure phosphoric acid and a
major specialty phosphate player. The Company employs approximately 9,900
employees worldwide.
ICL is comprised of three core segments: ICL Fertilizers, ICL Industrial
Products and ICL Performance Products. Its major production activities are
located in Israel, Europe, the US, South America and China, and are supported
by major global marketing and logistics networks. ICL benefits from exclusive
concessions to extract minerals from Israel's Dead Sea, a vast source of
high-quality and low-cost potash, bromine, magnesium chloride and sodium
chloride. ICL also mines phosphate rock from Israel's Negev Desert and potash
and salt from its mines in Spain and the UK.
ICL's (Israel Chemicals Ltd.) revenues for 2007 were $4.1 billion with
operating income of $715 million. ICL's shares are traded on the Tel Aviv
Stock Exchange (TASE: ICL).
PRESS CONTACT:

Fleisher Communications and Public Relations,
Amiram Fleisher,
+972-3-6241241,
amiram@fleisher-pr.com.

SOURCE ICL - Israel Chemicals Ltd

PRESS CONTACT: Fleisher Communications and Public Relations, Amiram Fleisher,
+972-3-6241241, amiram@fleisher-pr.com.