CVR Partners (NYSE:UAN) reported first-quarter 2026 results highlighted by higher nitrogen fertilizer pricing and strong plant performance, while management pointed to tightening global supply conditions amid geopolitical disruptions as a key driver of market strength.
First-quarter financial and operating performance
Mark Pytosh, chief executive officer, said first-quarter 2026 results included net sales of $180 million, net income of $50 million, EBITDA of $78 million, and a quarterly distribution of $4 per common unit. The distribution is scheduled to be paid May 18 to unitholders of record as of May 11.
Pricing, volumes, and cost drivers
On the call, the company reported operating income of $58 million for the quarter, with net income of $50 million, or $4.72 per common unit. Management attributed the year-over-year increase in EBITDA primarily to “a combination of higher UAN and ammonia sales pricing and higher ammonia sales volumes.”
Production and sales details shared during the prepared remarks included:
- Total ammonia production of 220,000 gross tons, with 70,000 net tons available for sale
- UAN production of 335,000 tons
- UAN sales of about 310,000 tons at an average price of $343 per ton
- Ammonia sales of about 73,000 tons at an average price of $687 per ton
Management said total sales volumes were down slightly versus the first quarter of 2025, primarily reflecting lower UAN production and sales due to “some minor planned and unplanned outages at East Dubuque.”
Pricing improved materially year over year, with first-quarter UAN prices up about 34% and ammonia prices up about 24% compared with the prior-year period.
Direct operating expenses were $63 million. Excluding inventory impacts, the company said direct operating expenses increased about $9 million year over year, driven mainly by higher natural gas and electricity costs as well as repair and maintenance expenses.
Capital spending, liquidity, and distributions
Capital spending totaled $14 million in the first quarter, including $8 million of maintenance capital. For full-year 2026, management estimated total capital spending of approximately $60 million to $75 million, including $35 million to $45 million expected to be maintenance capital. The company said it anticipates a significant portion of the 2026 profit and growth capital plan will be funded through cash reserves accumulated over the past few years.
The company ended the quarter with total liquidity of $178 million, consisting of $128 million in cash and $50 million available under its asset-based lending facility. Management noted that the cash balance included approximately $17 million related to customer prepayments for future product deliveries.
In discussing cash available for distribution, management said the partnership generated about $78 million of EBITDA and had net cash needs of $36 million for interest costs, maintenance capital expenditures, and other reserves, resulting in $42 million of cash available for distribution. The general partner’s board declared the $4 per common unit distribution for the quarter.
Second-quarter outlook
Looking ahead, management provided guidance ranges for the second quarter of 2026:
- Ammonia utilization rate of 95% to 100%
- Direct operating expenses (excluding inventory and turnaround impacts) of $57 million to $62 million
- Total capital spending of $28 million to $32 million
Market conditions and project updates
Pytosh said the tightness that emerged in the nitrogen fertilizer market in the second half of 2025 has been “amplified by the conflicts in the Middle East,” contributing to higher spring pricing. He also discussed U.S. planting expectations, citing USDA estimates of about 95 million acres of corn in 2026 and roughly 85 million acres of soybean plantings. Pytosh said December corn was around $4.75 per bushel and soybeans around $11.90 per bushel, and noted that the Trump Administration and congressional leaders “continue to discuss potential subsidy programs for farmers to help offset lower grain prices and higher input costs.”
He emphasized that the U.S. is a net importer of nitrogen fertilizers and that domestic pricing is influenced by global dynamics. Pytosh said the Middle East disruptions have affected global supply, noting that roughly 30% of nitrogen fertilizer production typically transits through the Strait of Hormuz. He also said multiple production facilities across the Middle East have been damaged or curtailed due to limited natural gas supplies, and that the timing is challenging because fertilizer inventories were already tight after large planting seasons in the U.S. and Brazil in 2025.
Pytosh added that European natural gas prices have increased, citing levels around $14 per MMBtu, while U.S. prices have fallen below $3 per MMBtu. He said Europe remains “at the high end of the global cost curve” for ammonia production and that reduced production has created opportunities for U.S. Gulf Coast producers to export ammonia to Europe for upgrade. He also said the company believes Europe faces “structural natural gas supply issues” likely to persist over the next few years.
On capital projects, Pytosh said CVR Partners continues work at its Coffeyville facility on a design and construction plan intended to enable natural gas as an alternative feedstock to third-party petcoke and to increase ammonia production capacity by up to 8%. He said the company now believes it can pursue the feedstock diversification and capacity expansion “without investing the capital to source hydrogen from the adjacent Coffeyville refinery,” which he said should significantly reduce the total capital spending required for that portion of the project.
He also cited debottlenecking efforts at both plants intended to improve reliability and production rates, including a brownfield capacity expansion at East Dubuque planned for completion during an upcoming turnaround, water quality upgrades, and an expansion of diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) production and load-out capacity.
If both brownfield expansion projects are completed, Pytosh said management estimates consolidated ammonia production capacity would increase by about 7%. He added that the funds for these projects are expected to come from reserves built over recent years, and said the board elected to continue reserving capital in the first quarter. “While the board looks at reserves every quarter, I would expect them to continue to elect to reserve some capital,” Pytosh said, adding that the partnership anticipates holding higher cash levels in the near term as execution and spending ramp up.
The call concluded without a question-and-answer session. Pytosh said the company looks forward to discussing second-quarter results in late July.
About CVR Partners (NYSE:UAN)
CVR Partners, L.P. (NYSE: UAN) is a publicly traded master limited partnership focused on the production and marketing of nitrogen fertilizer products. Headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas, the partnership owns and operates two nitrogen fertilizer plants in Coffeyville, Kansas, where it manufactures ammonia, granular urea, and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) solutions. These products are essential nutrients for a wide range of row and specialty crops, helping growers optimize yield and soil fertility across diverse agricultural applications.
The partnership’s operations center on two integrated facilities connected by pipeline, rail and trucking infrastructure, enabling efficient logistics and year-round production.
