The OCP Group (OCP S.A.) (formerly Office Chérifien des Phosphates) is a Moroccan

state-owned State ownership, also called public ownership or government ownership, is the ownership of an industry, asset, property, or enterprise by the national government of a country or state, or a public body representing a community, as opposed to ...

phosphate Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus. In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthop ...

rock miner,

phosphoric acid Phosphoric acid (orthophosphoric acid, monophosphoric acid or phosphoric(V) acid) is a colorless, odorless phosphorus-containing solid, and inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is commonly encountered as an 85% aqueous solution, ...

manufacturer and

fertilizer A fertilizer or fertiliser is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from liming materials or other non-nutrient soil amendments. Man ...

producer. Founded in 1920, the company has grown to become the world's largest producer of

and phosphate-based products and it is one of the largest phosphate,

chemicals A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combin ...

, and

mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid substance with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2011): Mi ...

industrial companies in the world by revenue. OCP has access to more than 70% of the world's phosphate rock reserves. Initially a

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

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 23,000 people in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

and a number of international subsidiaries. In 2018, its revenues amounted to US$5.884 billion.

History

Origins

The OCP Group was founded in

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 Khouribga (Moroccan , ) is the capital of Khouribga Province in the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region, Morocco. With a population of 342,125 (2024 census), Khouribga owes its growth to the phosphate deposits nearby. Geography Located at 107 km ...

. Transportation of the phosphate to the port of

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

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 (OCP S.A) * 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 * 2018 Inauguration of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University and Joint Venture with

IBM International Business Machines Corporation (using the trademark IBM), nicknamed Big Blue, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is ...

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 Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the total market value of all the final goods and services produced and rendered in a specific time period by a country or countries. GDP is often used to measure the economic performance o ...

in 2010. In 2016,

Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings Inc. is an American credit rating agency. It is one of the three nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (NRSRO) designated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and is considered as being one of the " Bi ...

confirmed the rating of "investment grade" for the OCP Group. After approval from the AMMC ((Moroccan Authority of the Capital Market) Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux) on December 9, 2016, the OCP Group managed to reach 10.2 billion

dirham The dirham, dirhem or drahm is a unit of currency and of mass. It is the name of the currencies of Moroccan dirham, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates dirham, United Arab Emirates and Armenian dram, Armenia, and is the name of a currency subdivisi ...

s 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 12 African countries. On 8 September 2023, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 M_w hit

Marrakesh-Safi Marrakesh-Safi () is one of the twelve regions of Morocco.Jounaux.ma
Its popul ...

region of Morocco. 6 Days later, the OCP Group donated $97.5 Million to Morocco’s Earthquake Relief Fund.

Operations

Mines and Key Sites

Khouribga

OCP's first mine opened in Khouribga in 1921. The

area has the richest phosphate deposits in the world. In 2014, a

slurry pipeline A slurry pipeline is a specially engineered pipeline used to move ores, such as coal or iron, or mining waste, called tailings, over long distances. A mixture of the ore concentrate and water, called slurry, is pumped to its destination and the wa ...

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 Desalination is a process that removes mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination is the removal of salts and minerals from a substance. One example is Soil salinity control, soil desalination. This is important for agric ...

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 Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

. In 2016, the mines' produced 6.3MT of

Phosphate Rock Phosphorite, phosphate rock or rock phosphate is a non- detrital sedimentary rock that contains high amounts of phosphate minerals. The phosphate content of phosphorite (or grade of phosphate rock) varies greatly, from 4% to 20% phosphorus pentox ...

, 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 ONCF (from French: ''Office National des Chemins de Fer''; ''al-Maktab al-Waṭaniyy lis-Sikak al-Ḥadīdiyyah''; ''Moroccan National Railways Office'') is Morocco's national railway operator. ONCF is a state-owned company that is under the c ...

, 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 Phosphoric acid (orthophosphoric acid, monophosphoric acid or phosphoric(V) acid) is a colorless, odorless phosphorus-containing solid, and inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is commonly encountered as an 85% aqueous solution, ...

, 1.91Mt

MAP A map is a symbolic depiction of interrelationships, commonly spatial, between things within a space. A map may be annotated with text and graphics. Like any graphic, a map may be fixed to paper or other durable media, or may be displayed on ...

, and 1.14Mt DAP. Over 30 different types of fertilizer were produced to suit various

soil type A soil type is a taxonomic unit in soil science. All soils that share a certain set of well-defined properties form a distinctive soil type. Soil type is a technical term of soil classification, the science that deals with the systematic categ ...

s. 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 Desalination is a process that removes mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination is the removal of salts and minerals from a substance. One example is soil desalination. This is important for agriculture. It is possible ...

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 Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen, ...

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 ( Boucraâ-

Laayoune Laayoune or El Aaiún (, Latn, ar, al-ʕuyūn , , ) is the largest city of the disputed territory of Western Sahara, with a population of 271,344 in 2023. The city is the ''de jure'' capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, though it ...

), in

Western Sahara Western Sahara is a territorial dispute, disputed territory in Maghreb, North-western Africa. It has a surface area of . Approximately 30% of the territory () is controlled by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); the remaining 70% is ...

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

* The processing plant and wharf are located at Laayoune beach, 20 km south-west of the Headquarters. A 102 km long

conveyor belt A conveyor belt is the carrying medium of a belt conveyor system (often shortened to a belt conveyor). A belt conveyor system consists of two or more pulleys (sometimes referred to as drums), with a closed loop of carrying medium—the conveyor b ...

is used for transporting phosphates from the mine *

Mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

activities are located 140 km away by road in

Bou Craa Bou Craa (also transliterated as ''Bo Craa'', ''Bu Craa'' or ''Boukra'') (, Berber: ⴱⵓⴽⵔⴰⵄ, ) is a town in Western Sahara, south-east of the main city of El Aaiún. It is inhabited almost exclusively by employees of phosphate company ...

, 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.

Products

Phosphate rock

The mining of

phosphorite Phosphorite, phosphate rock or rock phosphate is a non-detrital sedimentary rock that contains high amounts of phosphate minerals. The phosphate content of phosphorite (or grade of phosphate rock) varies greatly, from 4% to 20% phosphorus pentoxi ...

, (also known as phosphate rock or rock phosphate) was OCP's earliest operation, with the sale of these products being the company's main business. The company extracted 34.4 million tonnes in 2018, 11.3 million tons of which were exported, with

accounting for the biggest share. OCP market share in this product category is 38%.

Phosphoric acid

is made from phosphate and due to its

non-toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacteria, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect o ...

nature, is widely used in the

food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for Nutrient, nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or Fungus, fungal origin and contains essential nutrients such as carbohydrates, fats, protein (nutrient), proteins, vitamins, ...

, cosmetic, and dental industry. It is an example of diversification and supply chain integration to drive value. OCP produced 6.1 million metric tonnes in 2018, giving it a market share of 49%.

Standard (Conventional Fertilizers)

OCP also has a number of sites producing fertilizer. Fertilizer sales, including fortified fertilizers now account for slightly over half of OCP's total revenue and 23% of its world market share (2018 production: 8.8MT). The phosphate-based conventional fertilizers produced by OCP include; Mono-Ammonium Phosphate (MAP) a concentrated phosphate fertilizer, made with

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol P and atomic number 15. All elemental forms of phosphorus are highly Reactivity (chemistry), reactive and are therefore never found in nature. They can nevertheless be prepared ar ...

and

nitrogen Nitrogen is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a Nonmetal (chemistry), nonmetal and the lightest member of pnictogen, group 15 of the periodic table, often called the Pnictogen, pnictogens. ...

. Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) is a concentrated phosphate fertilizer, that can also be used as a

fire retardant A fire retardant is a substance that is used to slow down or stop the spread of fire or reduce its intensity. This is commonly accomplished by chemical reactions that reduce the flammability of fuels or delay their combustion. Fire retardants ...

. Triple Super Phosphate (TSP) is a concentrated phosphate fertilizer made with just phosphate. These can be used directly for soil fertilization or as raw material for blends, or other products.

Fortified fertilizers

OCP Group also produces a number of fortified fertilizers that can be tailored to meet the needs of particular types of soil – even down to a field by field scale. A number of different formulations are produced. NP+ are

and phosphate-based complex fertilizers, enriched with secondary and micro nutrients. NPK+ is similar in structure to the former, but uses a different chemical process, and contains

potash Potash ( ) includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water- soluble form.

. OCP products can also be tailored to meet crop specific nutrient requirements, for example, for

corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

, or cocoa.

Soluble fertilizers

Soluble In chemistry, solubility is the ability of a substance, the solute, to form a solution with another substance, the solvent. Insolubility is the opposite property, the inability of the solute to form such a solution. The extent of the solubi ...

Fertilizers are used for high value crops specifically for irrigated systems. They ensure efficient use of fertilizers, thus considerably enhance agricultural productivity and reduce water consumption. These fertilizers are well-suited to new

micro-irrigation Micro-irrigation, also called Micro-spray,localized, low-volume, low-flow, or trickle irrigation, is an irrigation method with lower water pressure and Flow (fluid), flow than a traditional Irrigation sprinkler, sprinkler system. Low-volume irriga ...

and sprinkler systems. The group's total fertilizer production is 8.8 million metric tonnes (including conventional fertilizers).

Animal Feeds

OCP also produces

animal feed Animal feed is food given to domestic animals, especially livestock, in the course of animal husbandry. There are two basic types: fodder and forage. Used alone, the word ''feed'' more often refers to fodder. Animal feed is an important input ...

s from phosphate. The product is called PHOSFEED and is made from phosphoric acid and

calcium carbonate Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a common substance found in Rock (geology), rocks as the minerals calcite and aragonite, most notably in chalk and limestone, eggshells, gastropod shells, shellfish skel ...

. PHOSFEED is GMP+,

HACCP Hazard analysis and critical control points, or HACCP (), is a systematic preventive approach to food safety from biological hazard, biological, chemical hazard, chemical, and physical hazards in production processes that can cause the finished ...

and

ISO 22000 ISO 22000 is a food safety management system by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) which is outcome focused, providing requirements for any organization in the food industry with objective to help to improve overall perform ...

certified.

OCP Globally

While the majority of OCP's operations are based in Morocco due to its large Phosphate reserves, the company has expanded globally, in processing, sales, and distribution. The company has more than 160 customers on five continents. The companies also support the communities they operate in by analyzing soil to tailor fertilizer to specific needs''.''

North America

OCP

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, headquartered in

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, was founded in 2019.

South America

OCP's largest

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

n operations are located in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. The company's Brazilian operations are made up of two companies, OCP di Brasil and OCP Fertilizantes, both headquartered in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

. The companies undertake competitor and market research as well as working with farmers to establish the best fertilizers for their needs. The company also helps market, sell, and distribute OCP products in the country. OCP sales in the country increased by 20% in Q1 2019.

India

OCP

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

undertakes market and soil research in order to drive sales of OCP products in the country. The company carries out administration, sales support and marketing for OCP's Indian customers. The company is constructing a fertilizer plant with Krishak Bharati Limited (

Kribhco Krishak Bharati Cooperative Limited (KRIBHCO) is a national level multistate cooperative society under the Ministry of Coorperation, Government of India Dr. Chandrapal Singh Yadav is the chairman from 1999. Shri MR Sharma is the Managing Di ...

) that will have a capacity of 1.2 million tonnes per year – the combined investment is worth

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

230 million. The unit will use phosphate

transported ''Transported'' is an Australian convict melodrama film directed by W. J. Lincoln. It is considered a lost film. Plot In England, Jessie Grey is about to marry Leonard Lincoln but the evil Harold Hawk tries to force her to marry him and she ...

from OCP facilities in Morocco, the company will also be responsible for the shipping of the products.

Asia Pacific (APAC)

OCP has a research, sales and marketing function in

Asia Pacific Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

based in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

and

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

. The construction of a fertilizer processing plant is underway in Singapore to allow easier

mass customization Mass customization makes use of flexible computer-aided systems to produce custom products. Such systems combine the low unit costs of mass production processes with the flexibility of individual customization. Mass customization is the new fro ...

of products for local markets.

OCP Africa

Founded as a wholly owned subsidiary of OCP S.A. in 2016, the company acts as a distributor for OCP products as well as operating facilities for fertilizer production. This capacity is being expanded rapidly following a large-scale investment program. OCP Group sees

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

as a major market for growth due to its unexploited potential due to the comparatively low use of fertilizers, which is reflected in lower than average per

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

crop yields. Support provided includes training programs and soil analysis that seeks to help farmers make the most of their land. OCP Africa operates in 16 African nations and has 12 subsidiary companies. OCP's largest African operation outside of Morocco, in Ethiopia, is set to expand significantly on the completion of a new fertilizer blending unit that will increase supply of customized fertilizer.

Major Subsidiaries and Joint Ventures

JESA

In 2010, OCP Group entered in to a

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...

with Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., one of the world's largest providers of

technical Technical may refer to: * Technical (vehicle), an improvised fighting vehicle * Technical area, an area which a manager, other coaching personnel, and substitutes are allowed to occupy during a football match * Technical advisor, a person who ...

, professional, and

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

services. The new company was named Jacobs Engineering SA (JESA).

Prayon

Prayon Technologies is a joint venture between OCP Group and the

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

Regional Investment Company. The original company was founded in 1882, in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

as the Société Anonyme Métallurgique de Prayon, a

Zinc Zinc is a chemical element; it has symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic tabl ...

producer. In 1996, OCP bought half of the shares. The company specializes in chemical R&D, finding and developing compounds and developing their use cases. The company, through OCP's expertise is recognized as a leader in phosphate creativity.

SEEFCO S.A.

In 2021, OCP Group and the Emirati Al Dahra Agricultural Company finalized the creation of a joint venture in

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. The new company was dubbed SEEFCO S.A. (South East Europe Fertilizer Company).

Financial information

2020 coronavirus crisis response

OCP Group contributed $310 million the Moroccan emergency fund, created by

King Mohammed VI Mohammed VI (; born 21 August 1963) is King of Morocco. A member of the Alawi dynasty, he acceded to the throne on 23 July 1999, upon the death of his father, King Hassan II. Upon ascending to the throne, Mohammed initially introduced several ...

on March 15.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Office Cherifien des Phosphates 1920 establishments in Morocco Government agencies established in 1920 Phosphate mining Fertilizer companies of Morocco Government-owned companies of Morocco Mining companies of Morocco