Maaden obtains government approval to create mining project

Further to the Company’s announcement on 21/03/1433 corresponding to 13/02/2012, Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) announces that it obtained the relevant approvals from government authorities to move forward to create a mining industries project in North Promise Industrial Mineral City for Mining Industries in the Northern province of Saudi Arabia which has been approved by the Council of Ministers in its meeting on Monday 28/03/1433 AH corresponding to 20/02/2012 for the exploitation of phosphate deposits at Umm Waal. 
Maaden will complete engineering studies to build a phosphate project which will include ten large world class plants and associated facilities required by the project. The total production capacity of these plants will be 16 million tons per year of basic and downstream materials, including phosphate concentrate, sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid, dicalcium phosphate and monocalcium phosphate used in manufacturing animal feed, purified phosphoric acid used in food and other industries, and sodium tri-poly phosphate used in detergents and mineral industries. Ammonia and phosphate based fertilizers complementing the industry will be produced at Ras Al Khair in the Eastern province. The preliminary estimated cost of the project is around SR 26 billion. 

The Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources has allocated the gas and fuel needed for the project. 

Maaden will announce further details in due course.