Poland’s ZChP to build phosphoric acid plant near its Senegal mines

LONDON (ICIS)–Poland’s Zaklady Chemiczne Police (ZChP) is to construct a phosphoric acid plant near the phospate rock mines in Senegal which it acquired a controlling stake in last year, the company said on Friday.

The investment is the next step in multi-component fertilizer producer ZChP’s plan to move to full fertilizer production in the country and set up a fertilizer distribution centre for West Africa.

Establishing the phosphoric acid installation would also help ZChP hedge against the risk of the European Union introducing tough limits on cadmium in fertilizers, the company said.

The phosphate rock mined in Senegal’s Lam Lam and Kebemer regions contained relatively low concentrations of cadmium and the costs of cadmium removal at the African subsidiary would be comparatively low, it added.

ZChP, part of largest Polish chemical group Grupa Azoty, paid $28.85m for a 55% stake in the former sole owner of the mines, African Investment Group, in August 2013.

Shipments of phosphorites from the mines to ZChP’s production complex in Police, near Poland’s northwestern Baltic Sea coast, would amount to 200,000 tonnes in 2014, the company said.

The target is to gradually move up to shipping a million tonnes to Police within a few years, it added.