SEOUL, Lotte Fine Chemical Co. said Saturday it has imported 5,500 tons of urea for vehicles from Vietnam, a move expected to help ease concerns over urea supplies following China's export suspension.

The amount is the largest with regard to an inbound shipment, since China suspended customs procedures for urea shipments to South Korea early this month. China is the world's largest producer of urea.

Lotte Fine Chemical, which supplies half of South Korea's urea demand for industrial use, said 5,500 tons of urea is an amount sufficient to produce around 15.5 million liters of urea solution for diesel cars to be used for a month.

The company said the shipment arrived in Ulsan, 299 kilometers southeast of Seoul, earlier in the day, and will use it to produce urea solution, a key fluid needed in diesel vehicles to cut emissions.

Seoul officials said China seems to have suspended urea exports due to tight supplies for its domestic use, though it was not a formal export curb.

China's latest move raised concerns over another supply chain crisis as South Korea suffered a major supply crunch of urea in 2021 following Beijing's export restrictions.

The government said it has secured more than six months of inventory of urea and will start to release state reserves of urea for diesel cars next week.

Source: Yonhap News Agency