Morocco drops to second place in the list of the largest phosphate reserves in the world. And this, after Norway announced the discovery of the largest stock of phosphate rock in the world.
Prior to Norway’s discovery of 70 billion tonnes of phosphates, Morocco had been at the top of the list for years, with giant reserves exceeding 50 billion tonnes. This represented around 70% of total world reserves, according to the specialized platform Energy. The new quantities discovered in Norway, which put it at the top of the list of the largest reserves of phosphate in the world, will give the European country the leading supplier of this material. This being the most important for the automotive and technology industry, especially for manufacturers of lithium iron and phosphate batteries.
The world’s largest phosphate reserves
After Norway, with giant reserves of 70 billion tons of phosphate, and Morocco, which has reserves estimated at around 50 billion tons, Egypt ranks third among the largest phosphate reserves in the world. And this, with reserves estimated at around 2.8 billion metric tons.
Egypt is working to develop its reserves of phosphates and other minerals, offering areas for mining exploration. A step announced by the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources in April 2023.
And in fourth place, we find the Tunisian state with about 2.5 billion metric tons. Then Algeria comes in fifth place among the largest phosphate reserves in the world. Its quantities amounting to about 2.2 billion metric tons. Next, China ranks sixth, with reserves of 2.2 billion metric tons, according to the same source.
Finally, Brazil and South Africa have huge phosphate reserves estimated at 1.6 billion tonnes. While Saudi Arabia has about 1.4 billion tons and Australia 1.1 billion tons, according to the specialized energy platform.
America leaves the top 10 list
Prior to the Norwegian discovery, the United States was last in the top 10 list. But at present, they are no longer on the list, their reserves being only around 1 billion metric tons.
Moreover, there are large deposits of igneous phosphate only in Brazil, Canada, Finland, Russia and South Africa; but they have not yet been discovered. This means that these countries are out of the ranking of the world’s largest phosphate reserves.
The quantities recently discovered in Norway are equivalent to the largest phosphate reserves in the world. They are of the order of 70 billion metric tons. While world reserves excluding Norway are 72 billion metric tons, according to the Euractiv website .
