Indian companies build phosphate fertilizer production lines in Syria

India Oswal Chemical Fertilizer Co., Ltd. sold its Paradip phosphate fertilizer company to a farmer fertilizer cooperative in India in 2005 and plans to return to the phosphate fertilizer market. The company recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with its state-owned Phosphorus and Mining General Company (Gecopham) through its subsidiary FZE to use phosphor tailings to build phosphate and monoammonium phosphate production lines in Syria.

Syria’s state-owned phosphate fertilizer and mining general company is controlled by the Syrian oil and gas sector. According to reports, whether FZE and the Syrian state-owned phosphate fertilizer and mining general company produced phosphoric acid by flotation tailings have not yet been determined.

Syria's state-owned phosphate fertilizer and mining company's phosphate mines in the eastern part of the country, respectively, have an annual output of 3.3 million tons of phosphate ore and 1 million tons / year. One of them has begun to expand production. It is estimated that the output will reach 3.55 million tons/year after expansion. The company produced 3.22 million tons of phosphate ore in 2008. At present, the company has a considerable portion of its phosphate rock for export, with exports of 2.47 million tons in 2008. The remainder is consumed domestically by the state-owned chemical group's chemical plant to produce phosphoric acid and trisodium phosphate.

The annual amount of phosphate ore used in the production of phosphoric acid in Syria should be about 594,000 tons, but the consumption in recent years is only half of the data. Because domestic production of trisodium phosphate only supply the domestic market.

Syria has a large stock of phosphate fertilizers. By the end of 2008, 31% of the stocks of phosphorus pentoxide were estimated to be 424 million tons. The country’s phosphate reserves are controlled by Syria’s state-owned phosphate fertilizers and mining general companies.

Last year, the Syrian State Phosphate Fertilizer and Mining General Company and the Department of Fertilizers of India (DOF) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoU) on the development of phosphate rock resources. The memorandum contains consultation services for the development of technical, economic, and environmental studies for the development of phosphate rock resources and provisions for the establishment of phosphate fertilizer plants. The company is preparing to select three Indian consulting companies for feasibility studies. However, so far, the project has not made any progress.

The Syrian oil and minerals sector and the industrial sector signed an agreement with the Syrian-Qatar Holding Company (SQHC) on the establishment of a phosphate fertilizer plant in May last year. At the time, SQHC stated that the project was a project of a joint venture of the Indian fertilizer sector, and that the process and feasibility study was underway and was undertaken by Nexant, an international chemical, chemical and energy consultant company.