Sherif Phosphates receives $36 million French loan

The Moroccan Sherif Phosphates Office (MSPO) received a $36 million loan from a French financial establishment. The loan will be used to set up a new unit for the production of phosphates in the Al Garf Al Asfar region on the Atlantic Ocean.

Sources in MSPO said that the loan will be transferred to the Moroccan - Indian Company for Phosphates Production which is responsible for setting up the unit at a cost of $230 million. The production capacity of the unit is expected to be 330 thousand tons per year.

The company was set up at the end of last month with a capital of $64.25 million from the MSPO and the Indian company Shampal at 50% each. Through its branch in Morocco, the French Bank De Paris had offered a $50 million loan to the company.

The company's board of directors is expected to hold its first meeting in January. The MSPO stated that it will increase its phosphate exports to India, which were worth $440 million during the current year.