Algeria announces launch date for $7bn phosphate project

Algeria’s $7 billion Integrated Phosphate Project, which is forecast to be complete next year, aims to quadruple the country’s production capacity.

The project in the north-eastern Tbessa province was launched in 2021 at the Bled El Hadba mine with initial investment of around $3 billion, which was increased later, according to the official Algeria Press Service (APS).

Algerian president Abdelmadjid Tebboune said on Monday after a cabinet meeting that the phosphate venture, owned by state energy company Sonatrach and other public entities, would be ready in the first quarter of 2027.

The project, which also involves the construction of a 400km rail line to the port, will boost Algeria’s phosphate output from 2.5 million tonnes to 10.5 million tonnes per year, according to APS, which said some will be used to produce fertilizers, mainly ammonia and urea.

Around 5.4 million tonnes of ammonia and urea will be produced from phosphates in the first phase and output will be marketed locally and abroad, it said.

Algeria – the seventh largest gas exporter in the world and the top producer in Africa – controls nearly 3 billion tonnes of phosphate deposits, among the 10 largest reserves in the world, the agency said, citing data by the Algerian ministry of energy and mines.

Algeria’s industrial drive runs parallel with plans to develop its hydrocarbon sector after years of low investment and maintenance depressed its output and reserves.

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In January the Opec member approved a five-year plan to develop its hydrocarbon industry, including attracting foreign companies into the sector.

“The plan has a dual objective including strengthening the core activities of the oil and gas industry – exploration and production – to ensure a sustainable supply, alongside the intensive development of downstream industries, particularly in the refining and petrochemical sectors,” Sonatrach said.

Algeria has one of the world’s largest gas deposits, officially estimated at 160 trillion cubic feet. It controls nearly 13 billion barrels of recoverable oil reserves, which could run out within 30 years at present production levels in the absence of new major discoveries, according to the Kuwaiti-based Arab Energy Organization.