ALKHOBAR, 20 July 2006 — The Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) and Litwin Europe Middle East BV of the Netherlands signed a contract yesterday for the construction of three phosphoric acid plants with a total cost of approximately SR1.2 billion.
Abdallah E. Dabbagh, president and chief executive officer of Maaden, and Max Abitbol, president and chief executive officer of Litwin, signed the contract jointly. Top executives of both companies witnessed the signing ceremony held in Maaden’s project offices in Alkhobar.
Dabbagh explained that the phosphoric acid plants would be constructed at Ras Az Zawr minerals industrial city for the Maaden phosphate project within a period of 34 months. The combined phosphoric acid plants will produce 4,380 tons per day of phosphate, making it the largest facility of its kind in the world.
Dabbagh added that the phosphoric acid plants will be designed to enable it to increase to 4,800 tons per day of phosphate, allowing further increase in fertilizer production from the Ras Az Zawr fertilizer complex. First production is scheduled in the first quarter of 2010.
The Ras Az Zawr mineral industrial complex is a SR30 billion investment that will include the phosphate project and the aluminum project with an alumina refinery, a smelter, a power plant and a port on the Arabian Gulf.
The construction of the phosphoric plants will help the Maaden phosphate project to accelerate its progress in advancing Maaden’s vision of becoming a dominant force in the world phosphate fertilizer market and a major part of the diversified economy of the Kingdom, leading to create new job opportunities for young Saudi adults.
Litwin is the third foreign company to sign up with Maaden. In April 2006, Maaden awarded a SR900 million contract to Outokumpu to construct three sulphuric acid plants in Ras Az Zawr. Dragados was also awarded a contract in July 11 to construct the ammonium phosphate granulation plants worth SR900 million.
The project management consultancy contract was awarded to WorleyParsons in February 2006 with a value of SR133 million.
