Maaden leases 4 new vessels to ship ammonia

signing ceremony

Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Maaden) signed agreements with Thenamaris LNG Inc. and Exmar Marine NV to hire a total of four vessels to transport ammonia produced by the company. 

The signing ceremony was held on the sidelines of IFA Annual Conference in Lisbon, Portugal. 

These shipping agreements will come into effect in the first quarter of 2022, Maaden said, in a statement. 

Under these agreements, Maaden's ammonia transport fleet will increase to seven vessels, with an annual shipping capacity of nearly 2 million tons.

The ammonia production line is part of the company's industrial facilities for the production of phosphate, said Maaden, confirming that it will start production at its ammonia plant in Ras Al-Khair Industrial City in the first quarter of 2022. 

Maaden's operations in phosphate production include three huge industrial complexes in the Kingdom, namely Wa'ad Al-Shamal mining city, Ras Al-Khair Industrial City, and Phosphate 3 extension, which will help boost ammonia production by more than 1 million to 3.3 million tons and increase phosphate fertilizer production capacity by 3 million tons, thus bringing the overall capacity to over 9 million tons annually.