OCP Group

OCP Group is a Moroccan state-owned phosphate rock miner, phosphoric acid manufacturer and fertilizer producer. Founded in 1920, the company has grown to become the world's largest producer of phosphate and phosphate-based products and it is one of the largest phosphate, fertilizer, chemicals, and mineral industrial companies in the world by revenue.
OCP has access to more than 70% of the world's phosphate rock reserves. Initially a mining company, OCP diversified in 1965 to become a phosphate processor, making it the world's largest fertilizer manufacturer. The company holds a 31% market share of the world phosphate product market.
The Group employs nearly 17,000 people in Morocco, along with staff in several international subsidiaries. In 2024, it generated revenues of US $9.76 billion.

History

Origins

The OCP Group was founded in Morocco in 1920 as the Office Chérifien des Phosphates following Royal Decree. Mining production began in 1921, when it began extracting phosphate rock at its first mine in Khouribga. Transportation of the phosphate to the port of Casablanca also started in 1921, allowing the first export of phosphate that year. Subsequently, OCP launched other mining sites in Youssoufia in 1931 and in Benguerir in 1976, and launched chemical production in Safi in 1965, and in Jorf Lasfar in 1984.

Ownership

In 2008, the OCP Group became a limited company. Currently 95% of the OCP Group is owned by the Moroccan state and 5% by Banque Centrale Populaire investment funds.

Corporate timeline

1920 Office Chérifien des Phosphates founded
1921 Launch of mining production in Khouribga
1931 Launch of mining production in Youssoufia
1965 Launch of chemical production in Safi
1976 Acquisition of 65% of Phosboucraa
1980 Launch of mining production at Benguerir site
1984 Launch of chemical production at Jorf Lasfar
1996 Construction of purified phosphoric acid plant launched in Jorf Lasfar
2002 OCP becomes sole owner of Phosboucraa
2006 Office Chérifien des Phosphates becomes OCP
2008 Transformation of Office Chérifien des Phosphates into a Corporation
2011 Joint Venture with Jacobs Engineering
2013 Joint Venture with DuPont de Nemours
2014 Launch of the Slurry Pipeline between Khouribga and Jorf Lasfar
2016 Creation of OCP Africa
2017 Inauguration of University Mohammed VI Polytechnic
2018 Joint Venture with IBM

In 2007, the OCP Group set itself a target to triple its production of fertilizers by 2020.
The OCP Group plays an important economic and social role in Morocco. The value of phosphates and their derivatives represented nearly a quarter of the country's exports and approximately 3.5% of the GDP in 2010.
In 2016, Fitch Ratings confirmed the rating of "investment grade" for the OCP Group.
After approval from the AMMC on December 9, 2016, the OCP Group managed to reach 10.2 billion dirhams of bonds from the national community. This loan is the largest ever made in the Moroccan market.
In February 2016, the OCP Group created a new subsidiary named OCP Africa, which is responsible for leading the development of the group in the African fertilizer market through a network of subsidiaries in twelve African countries.
On 8 September 2023, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 M_w hit Marrakesh-Safi region of Morocco. Six days later, the OCP Group donated $97.5 Million to Morocco’s Earthquake Relief Fund.

2020 coronavirus crisis response

OCP Group contributed $310 million the Moroccan emergency fund, created by King Mohammed VI on March 15.

Operations

Mines and key sites

Khouribga

OCP's first mine opened in Khouribga in 1921. The Khouribga area has the richest phosphate deposits in the world. In 2014, a slurry pipeline between Khouribga and Jorf Lasfar was launched, which transports phosphate from the mines to the processing facility safely and efficiently. The pipeline, one world's longest gravity powered pipelines saves more than 3 Mm³ of water per year, as well as a significant amount of energy. The site employs more people than any other OCP mine, which is more than 6,100 people. In 2016, the mine produced 18.9 MT of Phosphate Rock, or 70% of the total group output.
In 1994, the OCP Group started a new mining project in Sidi Chennane in the Khouribga area. The construction of the purified phosphoric acid plant was launched in Jorf Lasfar in 1996 and started production in 1998.
In 2014, the OCP Group inaugurated the slurry pipeline linking Khouribga to Jorf Lasfar, a technological advancement in the transportation of phosphates.
In February 2016, a fertilizer production plant dedicated entirely to Africa was inaugurated at Jorf Lasfar, the African Fertilizer Complex. Connected to the slurry pipeline, JFC 4 will be fully integrated and have its own thermoelectric plant. These plants not only make Jorf Lasfar completely energy self-sufficient, they also create an energy surplus that fuels the complex's sea water desalination station.

Gantour (Benguerir and Youssoufia)

Gantour is made up of two mining facilities, Benguerir and Youssoufia and holds the second largest amount of Morocco's phosphate reserves, 37% of the total.
The mine in Benguerir opened in 1980. It is situated 70 km north of Marrakesh.
In 2016, the mines' produced 6.3MT of Phosphate Rock, representing 23% of the group's total output. Since 2017, the mine has been one of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University's testing sites that is open to the scientific community and allows researchers from partner universities to test full-scale solutions in key areas. Called the "Advanced Mining Technology Platform," this pilot mine has many purposes.
Rock from Benguerir is transported by rail to Safi by ONCF, the national railway company of Morocco.
The Group's activities are organised into an integrated model covering all operations of the value chain from the extraction of phosphates to the production and marketing of various products including fertilizers and phosphoric acid.
The mine in Youssoufia is the second most important mine to the Moroccan economy after the Khouribga mine. It is also the third biggest producer worldwide of phosphate.
Since 1998, OCP has also operated the Bouchane mine, which is situated 40 km from Youssoufia. The phosphate from this mine is also processed at Youssoufia.

Jorf Lasfar

The Jorf Lasfar processing platform is the largest fertilizer complex in the world. The first phase of the site opened in 1984 and has been expanded multiple times since. Products are made using phosphate rock mined in Khouribga. The site produced 4.63Mt of fertilizer in 2016, including, 1.86Mt Phosphoric acid, 1.91Mt MAP, and 1.14Mt DAP. Over 30 different types of fertilizer were produced to suit various soil types. The complex is made up of several units including the newest, the Africa fertilizer complex and JFC II. The site is the world's largest exporter of fertilizer. The site has a desalination plant with a capacity of 25 Mm³ per year – since its construction this has significantly reduced the amount of water consumed by the plant from local sources.

Safi

The first OCP chemical site, the Safi complex started its activities in 1965 to process the phosphate rock from Benguerir. In addition to fertilizer and phosphoric acid production units, the site has a phosphate washing unit and a sulfuric acid plant.
In 2016, the site produced 1.5Mt of phosphoric acid and 832.6Kt of TSP fertilizer. These figures represented the highest production figures in the site's history. The site produces fertilizer for both the domestic and international markets.

Phosboucraa (subsidiary)

In 1976, OCP acquired 65% of Phosboucraa mine in Western Sahara and became the sole owner in 2002. Because Western Sahara is a non-self governing territory, the legality of mining by a foreign state actor is contentious under international law. As a result, several funds have disinvested from buyers of phosphates mined by Phosboucraa, and exports have dropped.
Operations at the mine originally began in 1972; its activities include mining, processing and marketing phosphate rock. Boucraa mine represents approximately 2% of Morocco's total phosphate reserves, 4.6% of OCP Group's total revenue and around 8% of the total rock extracted.
100% of profits made in the region are reinvested in the local community through the Phosboucraa Foundation. The Phosboucraa Foundation has so far helped more the 50,000 people through its various programs in education, health, and entrepreneurship.
Phosboucraa's activities are located in three different places:

Headquarters located in the City of Laayoune
The processing plant and wharf are located at Laayoune beach, 20 km south-west of the Headquarters. A 102 km long conveyor belt is used for transporting phosphates from the mine
Mining activities are located 140 km away by road in Bou Craa, thus far from any possible shipping area

To help develop the value chain at this site OCP is investing $2.2 billion to build a phosphate processing plant, producing fertilizer and phosphoric acid. The scheme is expected to create more than 5,000 job in the region.
Phosboucraa says that the project will continue a policy of hiring local workers, which they say make up 76% of the workforce, up from just 4% in 1976, achieved through outreach and training programs, and which have also led to hundreds of workers being trained to do skilled work at the groups site in the North. The numbers published by Phosboucraa, however, are disputed by local activists, including Western Sahara Research Watch, which notes that the designation of "local workers" doesn't distinguish between settlers and indigenous people.