White Plains, N.Y.-Bunge Ltd. and Office Cherifien des Phosphates (OCP), Morocco, on May 22 announced the formation of a 50/50 joint venture to produce fertilizers in Morocco. The jv, Bunge Maroc Phosphore S/A, will expand overall production capacity in Morocco and serve as an additional source of phosphate-based raw materials and intermediate products for Bunge’s fertilizer businesses in Brazil and Argentina. The companies will finance the venture with an estimated $350 million in debt and equity over the next three years. Bunge’s equity investment will total an estimated $54 million. The Brazilian retail fertilizer market has grown by 50 percent since 1997, as production of soy, corn, sugar, and other crops in the nation has increased. Today, Brazil imports roughly 50 percent of the phosphate fertilizers it consumes, while Argentina imports 100 percent. When fully operational in 2010, Bunge Maroc Phosphore is expected to have 375,000 mt/y of capacity, from which it will manufacture phosphoric acid, TSP, MAP, and DAP for shipment to Brazil, Argentina, and other markets in Latin America. Bunge is South America’s largest manufacturer of fertilizer and a leading producer of related animal nutrition products. The company currently operates four major phosphate mines in Brazil. Bunge Maroc Phosphore’s production facilities will be located in an existing industrial complex in the port city of Jorf Lasfar. Bunge will utilize its ocean freight logistics network to backhaul fertilizer shipments from Morocco to Latin America in the same vessels it uses to ship grains and agricultural products to Europe. OCP produces over 25 million mt/y of phosphate rock and owns a significant portion of the world’s phosphate reserves.
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