A Syrian freight train carrying phosphate derailed and caught fire in central Syria on July 21 after it was hit by explosives planted on the tracks by militants, according to an Associated Press (AP) report citing the country’s Transport Ministry.
The government-owned train was transporting phosphate from mines in Khunayfis in Homs province. According to the country’s state news agency, SANA, some of the train crew sustained injuries, but no further details are available. The Transport Ministry said work to repair the railway and restore traffic is underway.
Russian energy company Stroytransgaz has operated Syria’s Khunayfis and Sharqiya phosphate mines, located south of Palmyra, since early 2018 under a 50-year contract agreed to with the Syrian government in 2017. Under the contract, the Russian company is entitled to 70 percent of the revenue.
Since March of this year, the Russian company also has been in charge of state-owned fertilizer producer’s General Company for Fertilizers’ (GCF) Homs fertilizer complex (GM March 8, p. 25). Under the deal with the Syrian government, Stroytransgaz was reported to be slated to invest about $200 million in rehabilitation work at the GCF production facilities in exchange for a 49 percent stake and a 40-year production-sharing deal.