(Ecofin Agency) – Angola imports $120 million in fertilizer per year for its agricultural sector, according to the African Energy Chamber. To reduce these imports, several initiatives have been launched in recent years to produce fertilizers locally, notably with the Cabinda phosphates project.
South Africa’s International Development Corporation (IDC) has provided a $14 million loan to Minbos Resources. This is the announcement made on Wednesday October 2 by the Australian mining company, active on the Cabinda phosphate project in Angola.
The funding obtained is part of efforts to launch fertilizer production in Cabinda. Angola currently imports more than $120 million in fertilizer per year for its local market, estimates the African Energy Chamber. In this context, the development of a fertilizer factory by Minbos would make it possible to reduce fertilizer imports while contributing to the growth of the Angolan agricultural sector. According to the feasibility study published in 2022, Cabinda can deliver 236,000 tonnes of fertilizer annually over a lifespan of 20 years.
Minbos Resources thus signed an agreement in July 2023 to sell 868,000 tonnes of phosphate rocks over the first seven years of operation in Cabinda with Grupo Carrinho, the largest agro-industrial group in Angola. Carrinho has facilities to supply smallholder farmers with fertilizer, the Australian company said.
The initial investment necessary to launch production is also estimated at $48.5 million. Beyond the IDC, Minbos intends to rely on other financing institutions such as the Angolan Sovereign Fund (FSDEA), which last August approved financing of $10 million in the form of an investment in the company.
« The company is now in an excellent financing position, with a complementary mix of financing solutions to advance the Cabinda Phosphate Project […] We receive considerable support from some of Angola’s most important banking and investment institutions », Commented Lindsay Reed (photo, far right), CEO of Minbos.
According to an update released at the end of July 2024, construction work on the Cabinda project is expected to take 12 months. Minbos is aiming for the mine to enter production in 2025-2026.
Emiliano Tossou
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10/18/2022 – Angola: Minbos will put its Cabinda phosphate mine into production in 2023
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