Morocco’s OCP to Supply India with 1.7 Million Tonnes of Fertilizer

Rabat – Morocco’s phosphate giant OCP Group announced on Saturday signing a deal with India to supply the Asian country with 1.7 million metric tonnes of phosphate-based fertilizer over the coming 12 months.

Under the deal, OCP Group will supply India with 700,000 tonnes of fertilizer. The fertilizer would be tailor-made to meet the needs of the plants and crops they are intended for, according to an OCP statement quoted by Morocco’s state-owned media.

The Moroccan fertilizer producer is set to provide another one million tonnes of fertilizer directly to farmers. The shipments are expected to increase yields and raise the income of farmers, the OCP statement adds.

The Morocco-India agreement covers a number of joint initiatives in the field of research and development (R&D). The joint R&D aims to develop innovative solutions that would increase fertilizer efficiency.

Through its agreement with Morocco, India wants to secure a long-term supply of rock phosphate, which is a necessary raw material for making diammonium phosphate (DAP) and nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK).

India is turning to Morocco to secure fertilizers after China suspended the export of ammonium phosphate, a key component in the manufacturing of fertilizer.

With the deal, OCP and India have “entered into a strategic partnership to enhance food security, underlining their common ambition to benefit innovative and sustainable agriculture,” the statement reads.

Attending the signing of the agreement between OCP and the Indian fertilizer producers was the President of the OCP, Mustafa El Turab, the Minister of Health, Chemical Products and Fertilizers of India, Mansukh Mandaviya, and the Indian Ambassador to Morocco, Shri Rajesh Vaishnaw.

The deal between Morocco and India would contribute to preserving the Asian country’s food security amid the ongoing fertilizer crisis.

The Ukraine war caused a significant rise in fertilizer prices, as Russia was a key supplier of ammonia and gas – two crucial ingredients in fertilizer. Morocco’s OCP acted swiftly to fill the market vacuum left by Russia and many other companies that were forced to close down operations due to the rising production price.

While OCP historically relied on Russia to secure ammonia, the company turned to the US to secure ammonia and even boosted fertilizer production at the height of the global fertilizer crisis.

OCP adopts a unique approach that leverages innovation to reduce the cost of production while using raw materials sustainably. In Africa, the company deploys state-of-the-art mobile laboratories to sample the soil and optimize its fertilizer production.

“With this data, farmers can map which parcels of land require what type of nourishment and when. More efficient application of the right fertilizer – only what the specific soil and crop needs and will use — reduces waste and run-off into ground and surface water,” OCP’s CEO, Mostasha Terrab wrote in a blog post on the sidelines of Davos 2023.