Tanzania seeks OCP’s assistance in setting up a fertilizer plant

On Jan 31, 2023

The group chaired by Mostafa Terrab is continuing its conquest of the African market. The Moroccan phosphate giant is about to start negotiations to set up a fertilizer blending plant in Kisarawe.

The majority of Tanzania’s fertilizer needs are still being imported. The government is pursuing partnerships with the private sector in an effort to minimize this reliance on the global market.

The executive in Tanzania will start discussions with Morocco in the first week of February to establish a fertilizer blending plant at a location in Kisarawe with assistance from the OCP Group.

This decision was taken jointly by a delegation from both countries on the sidelines of the second edition of the African Summit on Food Sovereignty (Dakar 2 Summit) held from January 25 to 27 in Senegal.

The initiative is a component of a plan to guarantee a sufficient supply of fertilizer at reasonable prices on the Tanzanian market in the face of a severe financial crisis at Tanzania Fertilizer Company (TFC), the nation’s primary fertilizer distributor.

🇲🇦🇹🇿| La Tanzanie annonce être en négociations avec l'OCP pour l'installation d'une usine de blending d'engrais.

L'annonce fait suite aux discussions entamées entre la présidente tanzanienne, Samia Suluhu Hassan, et le CEO de l'OCP, Mostafa Terrab, en marge du sommet Dakar 2. pic.twitter.com/nFw33HVnWj

— Morocco Intelligence (@MoroccoIntel) January 30, 2023

According to the authorities, the state-owned company currently only has 6 billion shillings ($48.2 million), despite the fact that it requires a capital infusion of 45 billion shillings ($361 million) to fully restart its operations, which have been on hold for eight years.

Tanzania imports 90% of its estimated 430,000 tons per year of fertilizer needs, but the construction of a new plant should help increase local industry’s production capacity.

“As a country, we are forced to import at a high price. To solve this problem, we have no choice but to start producing fertilizer locally,” said Florence Turuka, chair of the TFC board of directors.

The OCP Group, which has committed to providing 4 million tons of fertilizer in 2023 as part of its supply program for Africa, sees this project as generally aligning with its goals.