global phosphate supplies under threat as syri

Global phosphate supplies under threat as Syrian conflict escalates
TURKEY and Syria exchanging artillery fire and Ankara threatening Damascus with the possibility of war should be sending tingles down the spines of phosphate investors -- just so long as their projects are somewhere else.

Syria not only has the world's 11th largest reserves of phosphate in the world, it is expanding its phosphate industry. Hence, should there be a full-scale shooting war, phosphate supplies could get a little crimped.

And the shooting will remind everyone that the world depends for the bulk of its phosphate on the volatile MENA (Middle East-North Africa) zone.

A useful map produced by Rum Jungle Resources (RUM), which has its advanced phosphate project in the Northern Territory and plans to rail output to Darwin to feed the Asian market, shows 23 centres of world production. Only one -- Phosphate Hill in Queensland -- is in this country, but eight of those 23 run in an arc from Morocco to Israel and Syria.
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If someone lights the MENA tinderbox, the farmers of the world are in trouble.

While all this is going on, we've actually lost a player. Last week, Phosphate Australia (POZ) announced it was putting on hold its Highland Plains project in the Northern Territory because it has not been able to find a partner. It will consider selling it.

Two other projects, however, may now be ready to make some progress. The seemingly never-ending fight between UCL Resources (UCL) and Minemakers (MAK) over the Sandpiper marine phosphate deposit in Namibia has ended in a truce, MAK agreeing to take $25 million from Oman's Mawarid Mining for its stake.
So UCL and the Omanis can get cracking at Sandpiper and MAK will have enough money to get back to its Wonarah phosphate project in the Northern Territory that has had both great promise and multiple delays.

Meanwhile, Minbos Resources (MNB) has started drilling again at its phosphate project in the Congo, while samples from its project in Angola have been successfully tested by Norwegian fertiliser giant Yara.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/opinion/global-phosphate-supplies-under-threat-as-syrian-conflict-escalates/story-fnciihm9-1226490204420

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