Announcement of World Bank Approves Fifty Million Dollars for Phosphate Fertilizer Expansion Project on October 19, 1978

'. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE . •World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A.• Telephone: (202) 477-1234 BANK NEWS RELEASE NO. 79/15 October 19, 1978 WORLD'BANK'APPROVES'$50'MILLION FOR PHOSPHATE FERTILIZER.EXPANSION PROJECT An expansion of ferti1izer production facilities in Morocco will be assisted wtth a $50 million loan, the World Bank announced today. The loan will be made to Maroc-Phosphore~ a subsidiary of the Office Chertfien des Phosphates, a state-owned company for fertilizer production. The $124.4 million fertilizer project consists of the erection of an additional unit on the site of the existing plant to produce for export 165,000 tons per year of phosphoric acid, complete with ancillary facilities and related civil works; and the construction of sulfur melting units and sulfur storage facilities, and of new phosphoric acid concentration and • storage facilities. The existing plant was built at Safi, a port in Western Morocco, with the support of a World Bank loan of $50 million . Once in full production, the net export value of the entire plant out- put will be about $200 million per year in 1978 terms. While the expansion project will provide employment for an additional 200 people, the entire project will provide training and job opportunities for some 1,200 people in a region where employment alternatives are low. Already the Safi complex is becoming a training center for future fertilizer or petrochemical projects tn Morocco. · The World Bank loan to Maroc-Phosphore, to be guaranteed by the Govern- ment of the Kingdom of Morocco is for 14 years, including a grace period of four years, and carries interest at 7.35% per annum. In addition, a fee of 2.65% will be charged by the guarantor. Poland is co-financing the expansion project through a $13.7 million loan. Credit Commercial de France (Suisse) S.A., Geneva, has agreed to parti- cipate in the first two maturities of this loan • • NOTE: Money figures are expressed in U.S. dollar equivalents. FORM NO. 1121 (5--76) T ECHNI CAL D A T A PROJECT: COUNTRY: TOTAL COST: Maroc-Pho~µhore Fertilizer Expansion Kingdom of Morocco $124.4 million • BANK FINANCING: $50 million for 14 years, [nc1udtng four years of grace, with interest at 7.35% per annum. OTHER FINANCING: Poland, $13.7 million IMPLEMENTING ORGANIZATION: Maroc-Phosphore Subsidiary of the Office Cherifien des Phosphates 305 Avenue Mohammed V Rabat, Morocco Telex: 31012 PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The project consists of the expansion of the Maroc- Phosphore production facilities at Safi, through: (a) the erection, on the site of the existing plant, of a fourth unit to produce • primarily for export 165,000 tons per year of phosphoric acid, complete with ancillary facilities and related civi1 works; and (b) the construction of sulfur melting units and sulfur storage facilities, and of new phosphoric acid concentra- tion and storage facilities. PROCU.REMENT: Maroc-Phosphore, which executed the original project, wi11 implement the expansion project. The Bank will not finance goods and services procured in Poland. For the portion of the project not covered by turnkey contracts, which includes other equipment and spare parts ($9 million) also to be financed by the Bank, procurement will be through inter- national competitive bidding, except for (a) items costing Jess than $100,000 each, up to an aggregate amount of $2 million, and (b) items whose availability is limited by the need for standardization of the four production units, and for which Jimited bidding using international shopping procedures will be followed. It is estimated that these items will not total more than $2 million. ECONOMIC RATE OF RETURN: ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: 1981 19% - 0 - •