The Moroccan state-owned OCP Group has commented on The Mosaic Company’s recent decision to file petitions with the US Department of Commerce and the US International Trade Commission that request the initiation of countervailing duty investigations into imports of phosphate fertilizers from Morocco and Russia. The Moroccan based phosphate rock miner, phosphoric acid manufacturer and phosphate fertilizer producer has stressed that since receiving this petition, it has cooperated with the American authorities, who are evaluating whether the petition warrants investigation, and will challenge the “flawed” allegations.
The petition filed by US-based fertilizer producer Mosaic with the US Department of Commerce and the US International Trade Commission requests “initiation of countervailing duty investigations” into imports of phosphate fertilizers from the Morocco and Russia. Mosaic also claims that large volumes of “unfairly subsidized imports” from these two countries are harming its fertilizer operations and causing “distortions” in the US phosphates market. “Mosaic is not competing on a level playing field,” said Mosaic President and CEO Joc O’Rourke in his appeal to “restore fair competition.” Mosaic is the largest US producer of finished concentrated phosphates in the world, with an operational capacity of 16.1 million tons.
Morocco is the world’s 2nd top phosphate mining country and largest exporter of raw phosphate and phosphoric acid — exporting 11 million tons in 2018 — and has the largest phosphate reserves at 50 billion tons, accounting for over 70% of global reserves. From January to April of 2020, Morocco and Russia were the top exporters of diammonium phosphate (DAP) and monoammonium phosphate (MAP) to the US. In terms of the MAP market share, Morocco holds 67.9% while Russia claims 23.44%. The Covid-19 pandemic has not heavily impacted Morocco’s share — causing only a 0.84% drop in volume — but Russia’s market share has declined by 59.87% due to the crisis.
Despite these shifts that favor domestic production, the American company is still looking to edge out Moroccan and Russian market influence. Therefore, the OCP Group categorically rejects this allegation by Mosaic, and stresses that it “operates in full compliance with all relevant laws and treaty obligations in relation to all sales of its products in the US market. In line with its mission and core values, the Group remains committed to all its customers and to continuing to serve the needs of farmers in the US as well as globally.”
