Purchasing fertilizers according to the plan, but facing issues with machinery: the agricultural machinery market in Russia is awaiting changes.

Procurement of fertilizers for sowing in Russia is proceeding as planned, however, some regions in the South and in the Volga region are lagging behind. This was reported by Roman Nekrasov, the director of the Department of Crop Production, Mechanization, Chemization, and Plant Protection, during a meeting of the operational headquarters of the Ministry of Agriculture at the "Golden Autumn - 2024" exhibition.

“Some subjects of the Southern and Privolzhsky Federal Districts, as well as new regions of the Russian Federation, are falling behind the plan. Weather conditions play a significant role in this lag. We will purchase fertilizers later, already for spring top dressing, and hope for the expected precipitation, as reported by Roshydromet,” he explains.

According to the presentation, from June to September, 3.2 million tons of fertilizers were purchased in Russia, which is 102% of the plan.

The Ministry of Agriculture notes that there have been no issues with fuel on the market.

“No information about fuel shortages has been received recently,” says Nekrasov.

However, acquiring new agricultural machinery presents difficulties.

“This year is quite challenging in terms of agricultural machinery. Problems with preferential lending and high key interest rates clearly do not promote activity in the market of agricultural machinery acquisition. However, it should be noted that in the Far East, the level of tractor and combine harvester purchases is higher than in 2023,” notes the specialist.

According to the presentation, as of October 4, farmers in Russia had purchased just over 7.8 thousand tractors, which is 2,036 less than the previous year. They bought 2957 combine harvesters (-225) and 343 forage harvesters (-54). Nekrasov points out that in regions where there are regional support measures in the form of subsidies for equipment purchases or reimbursement of leasing payments, “the acquisition is going quite successfully and efficiently.”