Areva, OCP agreement on Moroccan phosphates
23 October 2007
[Areva, 23 October] Areva of France has signed an agreement with Office Cherifien des Phosphates (OCP) of Morocco covering the extraction of uranium from Moroccan phosphate ore. Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of Areva, and Mustafa Terrab, CEO of OCP, a mining and chemical industries conglomerate, signed the agreement to develop "cooperation and research initiatives in the field of natural uranium" during a state visit to Morocco by President Nicolas Sarkozy of France. The companies have been involved in scientific cooperation since 2005. The new agreement adds an industrial dimension, with the companies planning to launch a joint feasibility study into an industrial site to produce uranium from phosphoric acid. Morocco's phosphate deposits contain around 6 million tonnes of uranium, according to IAEA figures quoted by Areva.
Further information
Areva
WNA's Emerging Nuclear Energy Countries information paper
WNN: New study on uranium from phosphates