São Paulo – Next year, a phosphoric acid factory should begin operating in the province of Skhira, in Tunisia, an Arab country located in North Africa. According to information disclosed by the African news agency Panapress, the plant, which will be located in the south of the country, should start producing in June 2010.
The plant’s capacity will be 360,000 tonnes per year and production should be exported to the Indian market. The project is the result of a partnership between the Gafsa Phosphate Company, based in the Arab country, and Indian companies Gujarat State Fertilizers and Chemicals (GCFC) and Coromandel Fertilizers Limited. The joint venture is named Tifert.
Gafsa is one of Tunisia’s most traditional phosphate makers, and was established in 1896 under the name Compagnie des Phosphates et de Chemin de Fer de Gafsa. Its operations range from the mining to the selling of the product, and Gafsa has become one of the world’s leading phosphate producers. Its output exceeds 8 million tonnes per year.
Phosphate mining is one of the most important sectors of the Tunisian economy. The product ranks among those most exported by the Arab country – which sells to over 20 countries – and Brazil is among the buyers of Tunisian phosphate. Out of US$ 11.3 million in Brazilian imports from Tunisia in August, superphosphate accounted for US$ 8.6 million.
According to information supplied by the company, the Tifert unit should generate approximately 350 jobs. Job generation is one of the challenges facing the Tunisian economy. The local labour force is 3.66 million. Out of total job positions, 55% are in agriculture, 23% in industry and 22% in the services sector. The unemployment rate is 14.1%.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
