Item 1. BUSINESS.

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Item 1. BUSINESS.

Our Company

All references to “CF Holdings,” “we,” “us,” “our” and “the Company,” refer to CF Industries Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries, except where the context makes clear that the reference is only to CF Industries Holdings, Inc. itself and not its subsidiaries. All references to “CF Industries” refer to CF Industries, Inc., a 100% owned subsidiary of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. Notes referenced throughout this document refer to consolidated financial statement note disclosures that are found in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data—Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

We are a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for clean energy, fertilizer, emissions abatement, and other industrial applications. We operate nitrogen manufacturing complexes in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, which are among the most cost-advantaged, efficient and flexible in the world, and an extensive storage, transportation and distribution network in North America. Our 3,000 employees focus on safe and reliable operations, environmental stewardship and disciplined capital and corporate management, driving our strategy to leverage our unique capabilities to accelerate the world’s transition to clean energy. Our principal customers are cooperatives, independent fertilizer distributors, traders, wholesalers and industrial users. Our core product is anhydrous ammonia (ammonia), which contains 82% nitrogen and 18% hydrogen. Our nitrogen products that are upgraded from ammonia are granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate solution (UAN) and ammonium nitrate (AN). Our other nitrogen products include diesel exhaust fluid (DEF), urea liquor, nitric acid and aqua ammonia, which are sold primarily to our industrial customers, and compound fertilizer products (NPKs), which are solid granular fertilizer products for which the nutrient content is a combination of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.

Our principal assets as of December 31, 2020 include:

  • five U.S. nitrogen manufacturing facilities, located in Donaldsonville, Louisiana (the largest nitrogen complex in the world); Port Neal, Iowa; Yazoo City, Mississippi; Verdigris, Oklahoma; and Woodward, Oklahoma. These facilities are wholly owned directly or indirectly by CF Industries Nitrogen, LLC (CFN), of which we own approximately 89% and CHS Inc. (CHS) owns the remainder;

  • two Canadian nitrogen manufacturing facilities, located in Medicine Hat, Alberta (the largest nitrogen complex in Canada) and Courtright, Ontario;

  • two United Kingdom nitrogen manufacturing facilities, located in Billingham and Ince;

  • an extensive system of terminals and associated transportation equipment located primarily in the Midwestern United States; and

  • a 50% interest in Point Lisas Nitrogen Limited (PLNL), an ammonia production joint venture located in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago that we account for under the equity method.

We have a strategic venture with CHS under which CHS owns an equity interest in CFN, a subsidiary of CF Holdings, which represents approximately 11% of the membership interests of CFN. We own the remaining membership interests. CHS also receives deliveries pursuant to a supply agreement under which CHS has the right to purchase annually from CFN up to approximately 1.1 million tons of granular urea and 580,000 tons of UAN at market prices. As a result of its minority equity interest in CFN, CHS is entitled to semi-annual cash distributions from CFN. We are also entitled to semi-annual cash distributions from CFN. See Note 17—Noncontrolling Interests for additional information on our strategic venture with CHS.

For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, we sold 20.3 million, 19.5 million and 19.3 million product tons generating net sales of $4.12 billion, $4.59 billion and $4.43 billion, respectively.

Our principal executive offices are located outside of Chicago, Illinois, at 4 Parkway North, Suite 400, Deerfield, Illinois 60015, and our telephone number is 847-405-2400. Our Internet website address is www.cfindustries.com. Information made available on our website does not constitute part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

We make available free of charge on or through our Internet website, www.cfindustries.com, all of our reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K and all amendments to those reports as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is filed electronically with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Copies of our Corporate Governance Guidelines, Code of Corporate Conduct and charters for the Audit Committee, Compensation and Management Development Committee, Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, and Environmental Sustainability and Community Committee of our Board of Directors (the Board) are also available on our Internet website. We will provide electronic or paper copies of

CF INDUSTRIES HOLDINGS, INC.

these documents free of charge upon request. The SEC also maintains a website at www.sec.gov that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

Our Commitment to a Clean Energy Economy

In October 2020, we announced that we are taking significant steps to support a global hydrogen and clean fuel economy, through the production of green and low-carbon ammonia. Since ammonia is one of the most efficient ways to transport and store hydrogen and is also a fuel in its own right, we believe that the Company, as the world’s largest producer of ammonia, with an unparalleled manufacturing and distribution network and deep technical expertise, is uniquely positioned to fulfill anticipated demand for hydrogen and ammonia from green and low-carbon sources. Our strategy is to leverage our unique capabilities to accelerate the world’s transition to clean energy. Our approach will focus on green ammonia production, which refers to ammonia produced through a carbon-free process, and low-carbon ammonia, which relates to ammonia produced by conventional processes but with CO2 removed through carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) and other certified carbon abatement projects. We have announced an initial green ammonia project at our flagship Donaldsonville nitrogen complex to produce approximately 20,000 tons per year of green ammonia. Additionally, we are developing CCS and other carbon abatement projects across our production facilities that will enable us to produce low-carbon ammonia.

Company History

We were founded in 1946 as Central Farmers Fertilizer Company, and were owned by a group of regional agriculture cooperatives for the first 59 years of our existence. Central Farmers became CF Industries in 1970.

Originally established as a fertilizer brokerage company, we expanded owning and operating fertilizer manufacturing and distribution facilities in the early 1950s with a principal objective of assured supply for our owners. At various times in our history, we manufactured and/or distributed nitrogen, phosphate and potash fertilizers.

We operated as a traditional manufacturing and supply cooperative until 2002, when we adopted a new business model that established financial performance as our principal objective, rather than assured supply to our owners. A critical aspect of the new business model was to establish a more economically driven approach to the marketplace.

In August 2005, we completed our initial public offering (IPO) of common stock, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange. In connection with the IPO, we consummated a reorganization transaction whereby we ceased to be a cooperative and our pre-IPO owners’ equity interests in CF Industries were canceled in exchange for all of the proceeds of the offering and shares of our common stock. At the time of the IPO, our assets consisted of one wholly owned nitrogen manufacturing facility in Louisiana, United States; a joint venture nitrogen manufacturing facility in Alberta, Canada, of which we owned 66 percent; a phosphate mining and manufacturing operation in Florida, United States; and distribution facilities throughout North America.

In April 2010, we acquired Terra Industries Inc. (Terra), a leading North American producer and marketer of nitrogen fertilizer products for a purchase price of $4.6 billion, which was paid in cash and shares of our common stock. As a result of the Terra acquisition, we acquired five nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing facilities, an approximately 75.3% interest in TNCLP and certain joint venture interests.

In March 2014, we exited our phosphate mining and manufacturing business, which was located in Florida, through a sale to The Mosaic Company for approximately $1.4 billion in cash. As a result, our company became focused solely on nitrogen manufacturing and distribution.

In July 2015, we acquired the remaining 50% equity interest in CF Fertilisers UK Group Limited (formerly known as GrowHow UK Group Limited) (CF Fertilisers UK) not previously owned by us for total consideration of $570 million, and CF Fertilisers UK became wholly owned by us. This transaction added CF Fertilisers UK’s nitrogen manufacturing complexes in Ince, United Kingdom and Billingham, United Kingdom to our consolidated manufacturing capacity.

In February 2016, our strategic venture with CHS commenced, at which time CHS made a capital contribution of $2.8 billion to CFN in exchange for membership interests in CFN, which represented approximately 11% of the total membership interests of CFN.

In late 2015 and 2016, we completed certain capacity expansion projects at Donaldsonville, Louisiana and Port Neal, Iowa. These projects, originally announced in 2012, included the construction of new ammonia, urea, and UAN plants at our Donaldsonville, Louisiana complex and new ammonia and urea plants at our Port Neal, Iowa complex. These plants increased our overall production capacity by approximately 25%, improved our product mix flexibility at Donaldsonville, and improved our ability to serve upper-Midwest urea customers from our Port Neal location. The total capital cost of the capacity expansion projects was $5.2 billion.

CF INDUSTRIES HOLDINGS, INC.

Prior to April 2, 2018, Terra Nitrogen, Limited Partnership, which owns and operates our nitrogen manufacturing facility in Verdigris, Oklahoma, was a subsidiary of Terra Nitrogen Company, L.P. (TNCLP). TNCLP was a publicly traded limited partnership of which we were the sole general partner and the majority limited partner, and in which we owned an approximate 75.3% interest.

In 2018, we announced that, in accordance with the terms of TNCLP’s First Amended and Restated Agreement of Limited Partnership (as amended by Amendment No. 1 to the First Amended and Restated Agreement of Limited Partnership, the TNCLP Agreement of Limited Partnership), Terra Nitrogen GP Inc. (TNGP), the sole general partner of TNCLP and an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of CF Holdings, elected to exercise its right to purchase all of the 4,612,562 publicly traded common units of TNCLP (the TNCLP Public Units). On April, 2, 2018, TNGP completed its purchase of the TNCLP Public Units (the Purchase) for an aggregate cash purchase price of $388 million. We funded the Purchase with cash on hand. Upon completion of the Purchase, CF Holdings owned, through its subsidiaries, 100 percent of the general and limited partnership interests of TNCLP.

Product Tons and Nutrient Tons

Unless otherwise stated, we measure our production and sales volume in this Annual Report on Form 10-K in product tons, which represents the weight of the product measured in short tons (one short ton is equal to 2,000 pounds). References to UAN product tons assume a 32% nitrogen content basis for production volume.

We also provide certain supplementary volume information measured in nutrient tons. Nutrient tons represent the weight of the product’s nitrogen content, which varies by product. Ammonia represents 82% nitrogen content, granular urea represents 46% nitrogen content, UAN represents between 28% and 32% nitrogen content and AN represents between 29% and 35% nitrogen content.

Reportable Segments

Our reportable segments consist of the following segments: ammonia, granular urea, UAN, AN and Other. These segments are differentiated by products. We use gross margin to evaluate segment performance and allocate resources. Total other operating costs and expenses (consisting of selling, general and administrative expenses and other operating—net) and non-operating expenses (interest and income taxes), are centrally managed and are not included in the measurement of segment profitability reviewed by management. See Note 21—Segment Disclosures for additional information.

Our Products

Our primary nitrogen products are ammonia, granular urea, UAN and AN. Our historical sales of nitrogen products are shown in the following table. Net sales do not reflect amounts used internally, such as ammonia, in the manufacture of other products.

202020192018
Sales Volume (tons)Net SalesSales Volume (tons)Net SalesSales Volume (tons)Net Sales
(tons in thousands; dollars in millions)
Products
Ammonia3,767$1,0203,516$1,1133,135$1,028
Granular urea5,1481,2484,8491,3424,8981,322
UAN6,8431,0636,8071,2707,0421,234
AN2,2164552,1095062,002460
Other(1)2,3223382,2573592,252385
Total20,296$4,12419,538$4,59019,329$4,429

(1)Other segment products include DEF, urea liquor, nitric acid, aqua ammonia and NPKs.

Gross margin was $801 million, $1,174 million and $917 million for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

We own and operate seven nitrogen manufacturing facilities in North America, including five nitrogen manufacturing facilities in the United States, and two in Canada. As of December 31, 2020, the combined production capacity of these seven facilities represented approximately 37%, 42%, 44% and 19% of North American ammonia, granular urea, UAN and AN production capacity, respectively. Each of our nitrogen manufacturing facilities in North America has on-site storage to provide

CF INDUSTRIES HOLDINGS, INC.

flexibility to manage the flow of outbound shipments without impacting production. We also operate two United Kingdom nitrogen manufacturing facilities that produce ammonia, AN and NPKs and serve primarily the British agricultural and industrial markets.

The following table shows the production capacities as of December 31, 2020 at each of our nitrogen manufacturing facilities:

Average Annual Capacity**(1)**
Gross Ammonia**(2)**Net Ammonia**(2)**UAN**(3)**Urea**(4)**AN**(5)**Other**(6)**
(tons in thousands)
Donaldsonville, Louisiana(7)4,3351,3903,2552,635—445
Medicine Hat, Alberta1,230770—810——
Port Neal, Iowa1,2301108001,350—110
Verdigris, Oklahoma(8)1,2104301,955———
Woodward, Oklahoma480130810——115
Yazoo City, Mississippi(8)(9)570—160—1,035125
Courtright, Ontario(8)(10)500265345——400
Ince, U.K.(11)38015——575415
Billingham, U.K.(8)595230——625410
10,5303,3407,3254,7952,2352,020
Unconsolidated Affiliate
Point Lisas, Trinidad(12)360360————
Total10,8903,7007,3254,7952,2352,020

(1)Average annual capacity includes allowance for normal outages and planned maintenance shutdowns.

(2)Gross ammonia capacity includes ammonia used to produce upgraded products. Net ammonia capacity is gross ammonia capacity less ammonia used to produce upgraded products based on the product mix shown in the table.

(3)Measured in tons of UAN containing 32% nitrogen by weight.

(4)Reflects granular urea capacity from the Donaldsonville, Medicine Hat, and Port Neal facilities. Urea liquor and DEF production capacities are included in Other.

(5)AN includes prilled products (Amtrate and industrial-grade AN, or IGAN) and AN solution produced for sale.

(6)Includes product tons of: urea liquor and DEF from the Donaldsonville, Port Neal, Woodward, Yazoo City, and Courtright facilities; nitric acid from the Courtright, Yazoo City, Billingham, and Ince facilities; and NPKs from the Ince facility. Production of DEF can be increased by reducing urea and/or UAN production.

(7)The Donaldsonville facility capacities present an estimated production mix. This facility is capable of producing between 2.4 million and 3.3 million tons of granular urea and between 1.2 million and 4.3 million tons of UAN annually. The facility is also capable of producing up to 1.2 million product tons of 32.5% DEF.

(8)Reduction of UAN or AN production at the Yazoo City, Courtright, Verdigris, and Billingham facilities can allow more merchant nitric acid to be made available for sale.

(9)The Yazoo City facility’s production capacity depends on product mix. With the facility maximizing the production of AN products, 160,000 tons of UAN can be produced. UAN production can be increased to 450,000 tons by reducing the production of AN to 900,000 tons.

(10)Production of urea liquor and DEF at the Courtright facility can be increased by reducing UAN production.

(11)The Ince facility can increase production of NPKs and nitric acid by reducing AN production.

(12)Represents our 50% interest in the capacity of PLNL.

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The following table summarizes our production volume for the last three years:

December 31,
202020192018
(tons in thousands)
Ammonia(1)10,35310,2469,805
Granular urea5,0014,9414,837
UAN (32%)6,6776,7686,903
AN2,1152,1281,731

(1)Gross ammonia production, including amounts subsequently upgraded on-site into granular urea, UAN or AN.

Donaldsonville, Louisiana

The Donaldsonville facility is the world’s largest and most flexible nitrogen complex. It has six ammonia plants, five urea plants, four nitric acid plants, three UAN plants, and one DEF plant. The complex, which is located on the Mississippi River, includes deep-water docking facilities, access to an ammonia pipeline, and truck and railroad loading capabilities. The complex has on-site storage for 140,000 tons of ammonia, 201,000 tons of UAN (measured on a 32% nitrogen content basis) and 130,000 tons of granular urea.

Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada

The Medicine Hat facility, located in southeast Alberta, is the largest nitrogen complex in Canada. It has two ammonia plants and one urea plant. The complex has on-site storage for 60,000 tons of ammonia and 60,000 tons of granular urea.

Port Neal, Iowa

The Port Neal facility is located approximately 12 miles south of Sioux City, Iowa, on the Missouri River. The facility consists of two ammonia plants, three urea plants, two nitric acid plants and one UAN plant. The location has on-site storage for 85,000 tons of ammonia, 130,000 tons of granular urea, and 100,000 tons of 32% UAN.

Verdigris, Oklahoma

The Verdigris facility is located northeast of Tulsa, Oklahoma, near the Verdigris River. It is the second largest UAN production facility in North America. The facility comprises two ammonia plants, two nitric acid plants, two UAN plants and a port terminal. We lease the port terminal from the Tulsa-Rogers County Port Authority. The complex has on-site storage for 60,000 tons of ammonia and 100,000 tons of 32% UAN.

Woodward, Oklahoma

The Woodward facility is located in rural northwest Oklahoma and consists of one ammonia plant, two nitric acid plants, two urea plants and two UAN plants. The facility has on-site storage for 36,000 tons of ammonia and 84,000 tons of 32% UAN.

Yazoo City, Mississippi

The Yazoo City facility is located in central Mississippi and includes one ammonia plant, four nitric acid plants, one AN plant, two urea plants, one UAN plant and a dinitrogen tetroxide production and storage facility. The site has on-site storage for 50,000 tons of ammonia, 48,000 tons of 32% UAN and 11,000 tons of AN and related products.

Courtright, Ontario, Canada

The Courtright facility is located south of Sarnia, Ontario near the St. Clair River. The facility consists of an ammonia plant, a UAN plant, a nitric acid plant and a urea plant. The location has on-site storage for 64,000 tons of ammonia and 16,000 tons of 32% UAN.

Ince, United Kingdom

The Ince facility is located in northwestern England and consists of one ammonia plant, three nitric acid plants, one AN plant and three NPK plants. The location has on-site storage for 11,000 tons of ammonia, 95,000 tons of AN, and 40,000 tons of NPKs.

CF INDUSTRIES HOLDINGS, INC.

Billingham, United Kingdom

The Billingham facility, located in the Teesside chemical area in northeastern England, is geographically split among three primary locations: the main site, which contains an ammonia plant, three nitric acid plants and a carbon dioxide plant; the Portrack site, approximately two miles away, which contains an AN fertilizer plant; and the North Tees site, approximately seven miles away, which contains an ammonia storage area. These locations collectively have on-site storage for 40,000 tons of ammonia and 128,000 tons of AN.

Point Lisas, Trinidad

The Point Lisas Nitrogen facility in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is owned jointly through a 50/50 venture with Koch Fertilizer LLC. This facility has the capacity to produce 720,000 tons of ammonia annually from natural gas supplied under a contract with The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (NGC).

Nitrogen Fertilizer Raw Materials

Natural gas is the principal raw material and primary fuel source used in the ammonia production process at our nitrogen manufacturing facilities. In 2020, natural gas accounted for approximately one-third of our total production costs for nitrogen products. Our nitrogen manufacturing facilities have access to abundant, competitively-priced natural gas through a reliable network of pipelines that are connected to major natural gas trading hubs near the facilities. Our facilities utilize the following natural gas hubs: Henry Hub in Louisiana; SONAT in Louisiana; TETCO ELA in Louisiana; ONEOK in Oklahoma; AECO in Alberta; Ventura in Iowa; Demarcation in Kansas; Welcome in Minnesota; Dawn in Ontario; Parkway in Ontario; and the National Balancing Point (NBP) in the United Kingdom.

In 2020, our nitrogen manufacturing facilities consumed, in the aggregate, approximately 365 million MMBtus of natural gas. We employ a combination of daily spot and term purchases from a variety of quality suppliers to maintain a reliable, competitively-priced supply of natural gas. We also use certain financial instruments to hedge natural gas prices. See Note 15—Derivative Financial Instruments for additional information about our natural gas hedging activities.

Nitrogen Fertilizer Distribution

The safe, efficient and economical distribution of nitrogen products is critical for successful operations. Our nitrogen production facilities have access to multiple transportation modes by which we ship products to terminals, warehouses and customers. Each of our production facilities has a unique distribution pattern based on its production capacity and location.

Our North American nitrogen production facilities can ship products via truck and rail to customers and to our storage facilities in the U.S. and Canada, with access to our leased railcar fleet of approximately 5,000 tank and hopper cars, as well as railcars provided by rail carriers. Our United Kingdom nitrogen production facilities mainly ship products via truck.

The North American waterway system is also used extensively to ship products from our Donaldsonville, Verdigris and Yazoo City facilities. To ship ammonia and UAN, we employ a fleet of ten tow boats and twenty-eight river barges, which are primarily leased. We also utilize contract marine services to move urea fertilizer. We can also export nitrogen fertilizer products via seagoing vessels from our Donaldsonville, Yazoo City, Billingham and Ince manufacturing facilities.

The Donaldsonville facility is connected to the 2,000-mile long Nustar pipeline through which we have the ability to transport ammonia to ten terminals and shipping points in the Midwestern U.S. corn belt.

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Storage Facilities and Other Properties

As of December 31, 2020, we owned or leased space at 63 in-market storage terminals and warehouses located in a 21-state region of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Including storage at our production facilities, we have an aggregate storage capacity for approximately 3.2 million tons of product. Our storage capabilities are summarized in the following table:

AmmoniaGranular UreaUAN**(1)**AN
Number of FacilitiesCapacity (000 Tons)Number of FacilitiesCapacity (000 Tons)Number of FacilitiesCapacity (000 Tons)Number of FacilitiesCapacity (000 Tons)
Plants9546332065493234
Terminal and Warehouse Locations
Owned22780——9244——
Leased(2)612423224391——
Total In-Market2890423233635——
Total Storage Capacity1,4503521,184234

(1)Capacity is expressed as the equivalent volume of UAN measured on a 32% nitrogen content basis.

(2)Our lease agreements are typically for periods of one to five years.

Customers

The principal customers for our nitrogen products are cooperatives, independent fertilizer distributors, traders, wholesalers and industrial users. Sales are generated by our internal marketing and sales force. CHS was our largest customer in 2020 and accounted for approximately 13% of our consolidated net sales. We have a strategic venture with CHS under which CHS has a minority equity interest in CFN. See Note 17—Noncontrolling Interests for additional information on our strategic venture with CHS.

Competition

Our markets are global and intensely competitive, based primarily on delivered price and, to a lesser extent, on customer service and product quality. During the peak demand periods, product availability and delivery time also play a role in the buying decisions of customers.

Our primary North American-based competitors include Nutrien Ltd., Koch Fertilizer LLC and Iowa Fertilizer Company. There is also significant competition from products sourced from other regions of the world, including some with lower natural gas or other feedstock costs. Because ammonia, urea and UAN are widely-traded fertilizer products and there are limited barriers to entry, we experience competition from foreign-sourced products continuously.

Our primary United Kingdom competition comes from imported products supplied by companies including Yara International, Origin Fertilisers, Ameropa, CHS and Helm. Urea and UAN are not produced in the United Kingdom, but along with AN are widely-traded fertilizer products with limited barriers to entry.

Seasonality

The fertilizer business is seasonal. The degree of seasonality of our business can change significantly from year to year due to weather conditions in the agricultural industry and other factors. The strongest demand for our products in North America occurs during the spring planting season, with a second period of strong demand following the fall harvest. In contrast, we and other fertilizer producers generally manufacture and distribute products throughout the year. As a result, we and/or our customers generally build inventories during the low demand periods of the year to ensure timely product availability during the peak sales seasons. Seasonality is greatest for ammonia due to the short application season and the limited ability of our customers and their customers to store significant quantities of this product. The seasonality of fertilizer demand generally results in our sales volumes and net sales being the highest during the spring and our working capital requirements being the highest just prior to the start of the spring planting season. Our quarterly financial results can vary significantly from one year to the next due to weather-related shifts in planting schedules and purchasing patterns.

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Environmental, Health and Safety

We are subject to numerous environmental, health and safety laws and regulations in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the European Union and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, including laws and regulations relating to the generation and handling of hazardous substances and wastes; the cleanup of hazardous substance releases; the discharge of regulated substances to air or water; and the demolition of existing plant sites upon permanent closure. In the United States, these laws include the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) and various other federal, state and local statutes. Violations of environmental, health and safety laws can result in substantial penalties, court orders to install pollution-control equipment, civil and criminal sanctions, permit revocations and facility shutdowns. In addition, environmental, health and safety laws and regulations may impose joint and several liability, without regard to fault, for cleanup costs on potentially responsible parties who have released or disposed of hazardous substances into the environment. We may be subject to more stringent enforcement of existing or new environmental, health and safety laws in the future.

Environmental, Health and Safety Expenditures

Our environmental, health and safety capital expenditures in 2020 totaled approximately $40 million. We estimate that we will have approximately $45 million of capital expenditures for environmental, health and safety in 2021. In addition, to support safe and reliable operations at our continuous process manufacturing facilities, we conduct scheduled inspections, replacements and overhauls of our plant machinery and equipment, which are referred to as turnarounds. A further description of turnaround activities is included in Note 6—Property, Plant and Equipment—Net to our consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of this report. Environmental, health and safety laws and regulations are complex, change frequently and have tended to become more stringent over time. We expect that continued government and public emphasis on environmental issues will result in increased future expenditures for environmental controls at our manufacturing and distribution facilities. Such expenditures could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Additionally, future environmental, health and safety laws and regulations or reinterpretation of current laws and regulations may require us to make substantial expenditures. Our costs to comply with, or any liabilities under, these laws and regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

CERCLA/Remediation Matters

From time to time, we receive notices from governmental agencies or third parties alleging that we are a potentially responsible party at certain cleanup sites under CERCLA or other environmental cleanup laws. In 2011, we received a notice from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (IDEQ) that alleged that we were a potentially responsible party for the cleanup of a former phosphate mine site we owned in the late 1950s and early 1960s located in Georgetown Canyon, Idaho. The current owner of the property and a former mining contractor received similar notices for the site. Based on a Consent Order entered into with IDEQ and the U.S. Forest Service in 2014, we and the current property owner are currently conducting a remedial investigation and feasibility study of the site. In 2015, we and several other parties received a notice that the U.S. Department of the Interior and other trustees intend to undertake a natural resource damage assessment for 17 former phosphate mines in southeast Idaho, one of which is the former Georgetown Canyon mine. See Note 20—Contingencies for additional information.

Regulation of Greenhouse Gases

We are subject to regulations in the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada and the United States concerning greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The United Kingdom has adopted GHG emissions regulations, including regulations to implement the European Union Greenhouse Gas Emission Trading System (EU ETS). Our U.K. manufacturing plants are required to report GHG emissions annually to the United Kingdom Environment Agency pursuant to their site Environmental Permits and Climate Change Agreement, which specify energy efficiency targets. Failure to meet efficiency targets may require these plants to purchase CO2 emissions allowances. The steam boilers at each of our U.K. sites have also been subject to the EU ETS, and have been required to hold or obtain emissions allowances to offset GHG emissions. Notwithstanding the exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Brexit) on January 31, 2020, facilities in the United Kingdom remained subject to the EU ETS through the end of 2020. Beginning on January 1, 2021, our U.K. manufacturing plants became subject to the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS). At least initially, the UK ETS is expected to be similar to the EU ETS, although the U.K. government has stated that it intends to establish an emissions cap that is lower than what it would have been had the United Kingdom remained subject to the EU ETS. No agreement has been reached as to whether the UK ETS will establish a linkage with the EU ETS or other national emission trading systems.

CF INDUSTRIES HOLDINGS, INC.

In Canada, we are required to conduct an annual review of our operations with respect to compliance with Environment Canada’s National Pollutant Release Inventory and Ontario’s Mandatory Monitoring and Reporting Regulation and the GHG Reporting Regulation. In 2018, the federal Greenhouse Pollution Pricing Act came into effect, pursuant to which Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) will implement the Output-Based Performance Standard (OBPS), which is intended to function as a backstop to provincial greenhouse gas emissions regulations. In June 2019, the ECCC finalized the emission limits for carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions from nitrogen fertilizer products. These emission limits are based on 95% of the average emissions intensity for the production of such products from all Canadian nitrogen fertilizer plants, reflecting that such products are deemed to be energy-intensive and trade-exposed and thus subject to a less stringent emissions reduction requirement. In the provinces and territories where the OBPS applies, a facility whose carbon emissions exceed the applicable limits is required to offset emissions by obtaining and retiring surplus emission credits, obtaining qualifying emissions offsets, or paying a fee, which for calendar year 2019 was CAD $20 per ton of excess carbon dioxide equivalent, and which fee increases by CAD $10 per ton for each succeeding year through 2022. In December 2020, the Canadian federal government announced that it intended to increase the price of excess emissions of CO2e by CAD $15 per ton for each year beginning in 2023, with the price of excess CO2e emissions reaching CAD $170 per ton by 2030. Ontario, Saskatchewan and Alberta are challenging whether the federal government has jurisdiction to impose a federal carbon price on the provinces and territories. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal (in May 2019) and the Ontario Court of Appeal (in June 2019) each held that the Greenhouse Pollution Pricing Act (GPPA) was validly enacted under the Canadian constitution, while the Alberta Court of Appeal ruled in February 2020 that the GPPA was unconstitutional. Oral argument on the appeal of these decisions was heard by the Supreme Court of Canada in September 2020.

In January 2017, Ontario launched its own GHG cap and trade program and beginning January 1, 2018, Ontario’s cap and trade program was linked with the cap and trade programs in Quebec and California. Our Courtright Nitrogen Complex was subject to the Ontario cap and trade program. However, the Ontario government rescinded the cap and trade program in June 2018. Because Ontario no longer had a GHG regulatory regime, the federal government imposed the OBPS in the province beginning in 2019. In July 2019, the new Ontario government enacted a new GHG regulation, called the Emissions-Performance Standards program (EPS), that sets CO2e emissions limits for nitrogen products based on a production weighted sectoral average. For facilities whose carbon emissions exceed the applicable limits, compliance options included the purchase of emissions performance units for a fee of CAD $20 per ton of excess CO2e for calendar year 2019, which fee rises by CAD $10 per ton each year through 2022. Except for registration and recordkeeping provisions, the EPS has not yet gone into effect in Ontario and facilities in Ontario are subject to the federal OBPS. However, in September 2020, ECCC announced that the Ontario EPS met the federal government’s minimum stringency benchmark requirements, and the federal carbon pricing system will no longer apply in Ontario at a date to be set in consultation between ECCC and the Ontario government.

Beginning in 2018, our Medicine Hat Nitrogen Complex became subject to the Carbon Competitiveness Incentive Regulation (CCIR). This regulation establishes product-specific benchmarks based on the most efficient GHG-emitting facilities in a sector. A facility with emissions that exceeded the applicable benchmark was required to take action to reduce its GHG emissions intensity, purchase emissions offsets or performance credits, or make contributions to Alberta’s climate fund. In 2019, the Alberta government passed the Technology Innovation and Emission Reduction Implementation Act (TIER), which replaced the CCIR and went into effect on January 1, 2020. The TIER requires large emitting facilities (other than electricity producers, which are subject to a different standard) to comply with the least stringent of a “facility-specific” benchmark of 90% of historical GHG emissions intensity from a three-year baseline, which intensity limit will be reduced by 1% a year beginning in 2021, or a benchmark reflecting the emissions intensity of the top 10% of facilities for a given sector. The compliance options under the TIER are similar to the compliance options under the CCIR, including initially establishing the price for payments into its carbon fund at CAD $30 per excess ton of emissions (the same effective price as set in the CCIR). The federal government had determined that Alberta’s CCIR meets its stringency requirements and did not impose the OBPS in 2019. In December 2019, the federal government determined that the TIER also met the stringency requirements of the OBPS with respect to its regulation of large industrial emitters for 2020. The Alberta government has announced that it will increase the levy for excess emissions of CO2e from CAD $30 per ton in 2020 by CAD $10 per year, up to CAD $50 per ton in 2022, to match the price of carbon established in the OBPS.

In the United States, GHG regulation is evolving at state, regional and federal levels, although some of the more significant developments to date, including EPA’s efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel-fired power plants, do not directly impose obligations on our facilities. The EPA issued a mandatory GHG reporting rule that required all of our U.S. manufacturing facilities to commence monitoring GHG emissions beginning on January 1, 2010 and reporting the previous year’s emissions annually starting in 2011. In addition, if we seek to modify or expand any of our major facilities and as a result, are required to obtain a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) construction permit applicable to such facilities, we could be subject to pollution control requirements applicable to GHGs in addition to requirements applicable to conventional air pollutants. Such requirements may result in increased costs or delays in completing such projects. Other than

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the states’ implementation of this permitting requirement, none of the states where our U.S. production facilities are located-Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma-has proposed control regulations limiting GHG emissions.

On December 12, 2015, 195 countries adopted by consensus a new international agreement known as the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement was accepted by the United States and ratified by Canada and the United Kingdom and went into effect in November 2016. The Paris Agreement is intended to provide a framework pursuant to which the parties to the agreement will attempt to hold the increase in global average temperatures to below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Each signatory is required to develop its own national plan to attain this objective. Increasing concern over the impacts of climate change is driving the signatories to establish even more ambitious GHG reduction targets. In December 2020, the United Kingdom announced a target to reduce GHG emission 68% from 1990 levels by 2030. The EU has announced a new target to reduce its GHG emission 55% below 1990 levels by 2030. On November 4, 2019, the United States submitted formal notice of its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, which became effective on November 4, 2020, but on January 20, 2021, President Biden announced that the United States has rejoined the Paris Agreement. This will require the United States to submit its own national plan for reducing GHG emissions. Executive Orders issued by the Biden Administration, including in particular an executive order issued on January 27, 2021 focusing on climate change, evidence the Administration’s intent to undertake numerous initiatives in an effort to reduce GHG emissions, including promoting renewable energy development, limiting or prohibiting new oil and gas leases on federal lands, and in general, making climate change considerations a critical component of federal policy.

New Source Performance Standards for Nitric Acid Plants

We operate 14 nitric acid plants in the United States. On August 14, 2012, the EPA issued a final regulation revising air emission standards applicable to newly constructed, reconstructed or modified nitric acid plants. The regulations will apply to these plants if and when we undertake activities or operations that are considered modifications, including physical changes that would allow us to increase our production capacity at these plants. The regulations include certain provisions that could make it difficult for us to meet the limits on emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) notwithstanding pollution controls we may add to our plants, and accordingly, the regulations could impact our ability to expand production at our existing plants. The EPA regulation did not include a limitation on emissions of nitrous oxide (a greenhouse gas).

Regulatory Permits and Approvals

We hold numerous environmental and other governmental permits and approvals authorizing operations at each of our facilities. A decision by a government agency to deny or delay issuing a new or renewed regulatory material permit or approval, or to revoke or substantially modify an existing material permit or approval, could have a material adverse effect on our ability to continue operations at the affected facility. Any future expansion of our existing operations is also predicated upon securing the necessary environmental or other permits or approvals. More stringent environmental standards may impact our ability to obtain such permits.

Human Capital Resources

Our long-term success depends on our people. We are dedicated to creating a workplace where employees are proud to work and grow and everyone feels empowered to do their best work. We do this by investing in extensive recruitment, training and professional development opportunities for our employees and fostering diversity and inclusion in our culture.

Employee Population. We employed approximately 3,000 employees at December 31, 2020, of which 66% were located in the United States, 20% in the United Kingdom, and 14% in Canada. As of December 31, 2020, 16% of our employees have worked for the Company more than 20 years, 16% of our employees have worked for the Company between 11 and 20 years, 27% of our employees have worked for the Company between 6 and 10 years, and 41% of our employees have worked at the Company for less than 6 years. Full-time employees represented approximately 99% of our workforce as of December 31, 2020 and approximately 15% were covered by a collective bargaining agreement. We supplement our workforce with contractors with specialized skill sets during periods of peak activity, such as during turnarounds and maintenance events.

Culture, Inclusion and Diversity. Our core values and their underlying principles reflect our commitment to a diverse and inclusive culture, treating one another with respect. During 2020, all of our employees engaged in training to learn to recognize and address the effects of unconscious bias by challenging assumptions; encouraging diversity of experience, opinion, and expression; and supporting a workplace culture that actively strives to be more inclusive. As of December 31, 2020, approximately 14% of our global workforce was female and 15% of the Company’s employees in managerial roles were female. Minorities represented approximately 14% of the Company’s U.S. workforce and 12% of our U.S. employees in managerial roles. In order to continue to improve the inclusiveness and diversity of our company and culture, our recently

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announced comprehensive ESG goals include goals to increase the representation of females and persons of color in senior leadership roles and to implement a program designed to increase the hiring and promotion of minority and female candidates.

Workforce Health and Safety. Operating in a safe and responsible manner is a core value and an integral part of what sets the Company apart. We believe that focusing on leading indicators - such as the behavioral safety practices we have incorporated into our annual incentive plan - to drive and measure activities that prevent and control safety incidents, results in our industry-leading safety record. As of December 31, 2020, our 12-month rolling average recordable incident rate (RIR) was 0.14 incidents per 200,000 work hours, and our total recordable injury count was four. For the year ended December 31, 2020, our days away, restricted or transferred (DART) incident rate was 0.03 injuries per 200,000 work hours, and our lost time incident rate was 0.00.

Response to COVID-19 Pandemic. During fiscal 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we implemented safety precautions to protect the health and well-being of all of our employees, including the manufacturing workforce who operate our nitrogen manufacturing complexes and distribution facilities. See Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Overview of CF Holdings—Market Conditions and Current Developments—COVID-19 Pandemic, for a further discussion of the pandemic and the actions we have taken.

Talent Development. A core aspect of our culture is our commitment to identifying and developing talent to help employees accelerate growth and achieve their career goals. We invest in extensive assessment, training and professional development opportunities for our employees through a robust set of formal and informal programs, including targeted job movements, key experiences, and training, with an emphasis on creating a culture of inclusion. Leadership is the quality that drives our values and sets us apart. To help foster leadership, we have developed a set of leadership competencies that provide a common language for how to demonstrate leadership at every level of the organization. We view training and development programs as being a key part of succession planning, allowing us to grow a stronger company today and in the future.

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