The Industry and Mineral Resources Minister of Saudi Arabia, Bandar Al-Khorayef, embarked on a journey to Morocco with an agenda centered on exploring and enhancing collaborative ventures in the phosphate mining industry, with a particular focus on phosphates.
State news channels reported that during his visit, which coincided with his attendance at the 28th session of the Arab Organisation for Industrial Development, Standardisation and Mines in Rabat, the minister engaged with Morocco’s Energy Transition Minister Leila Benali and Economy Minister Nadia Fettah.
Saudi Arabia is intent on leveraging Morocco’s sectoral proficiency to fortify the phosphate fertilizer marketplace, widen its client base, and amplify regional collaboration in this sphere.
The Gulf nation is also determined to tackle the challenges hindering the importation and exportation of critical minerals within the area and, importantly, to intensify its cooperative efforts with Morocco, thereby promoting its exports to the North African kingdom.
In the eyes of Moroccan media, Saudi Arabia’s strategic objective is to ascend to the position of the world’s second-largest exporter of phosphate fertilizers, drawing upon Morocco’s extensive knowledge and skills in phosphate extraction, processing, and global distribution networks.
As an already established exporter of phosphate rock, Saudi Arabia is also eager to develop ancillary industries, including animal feed and phosphorus production, the latter being essential in manufacturing electric car batteries and pharmaceuticals.
In pursuit of these ambitions, the nation is channeling substantial investment, allocating over 30 billion dollars to the sector, and initiating new ventures totaling nearly 8 billion dollars through public-private partnerships. Notably, Saudi Arabia’s northern frontier encompasses around 7% of global phosphate reserves.
Conversely, Morocco stands as a premier supplier of phosphates globally, with the industry constituting 20% of the country’s export volume and accounting for 5% of its Gross Domestic Product. Morocco is home to 70% of the planet’s phosphate reserves, managed by the OCP group, which specializes in the extraction, processing, manufacturing, exportation, and value optimization of phosphate.
