Qatar in deal for Algeria steel complex and fertiliser plant

 The steel complex in Algeria is being constructed through a joint venture in which Algeria will have 51% stake and the remaining 49% with Qatar, represented by Qatar Steel International and Qatar Mining with 24.5% each stake

Qatar and Algeria are jointly constructing a steel complex in the North African country with a total production capacity of 4mn tonnes of per annum (mtpa) of steel rebars and wiring rods.

The first phase of the project, which is expected to cost $2bn, will produce 1.5 mtpa of steel rebars and 0.5 mtpa of wiring rods to meet the requirements of Algeria, which now imports about 3 mtpa of steel rebars and wiring rods.

The steel complex at the industrial area of Bellara (Jijel) is being constructed through a joint venture in which Algeria (represented by Sider Company and National Investment Fund) will have 51% stake and the remaining 49% with Qatar (represented by Qatar Steel International and Qatar Mining 24.5% each).

The joint venture is scheduled to be established within a month and the project is expected to take 42 months to complete. The plant’s commercial production is slated to start in 2017 with an estimated capacity of more than 5 mtpa in its final phase.

Pursuant to a joint venture pact inked on January 7 this year, a shareholders’ agreement was signed on Sunday for the construction and operation of the steel complex.

The planned steel complex will create more than 1,000 direct jobs and thousands of indirect jobs in Algeria.

Algeria also signed accords with Qatar and Norway to build fertiliser factories as growing populations boost food demand, spurring farmers to plant more crops, according to Bloomberg.

Yara International of Norway is investing in a $2bn ammonia, nitric acid, ammonium nitrate and nitrogen fertiliser factory, according to the state-run Algeria Press Service. It is sharing ownership with Asmidal, part of Algeria’s state-owned Sonatrach.

Norway is also joining Qatar in constructing a $3.5bn ammonium plant in Hadjar Essed, and a phosphoric acid factory in Oued Koubrite, in the northeast near the border with Tunisia, APS said. They are also sharing ownership with Algeria.

The Algerian government said last year it was allocating $14bn to build three fertiliser factories by 2020, with a total installed capacity of 35 mtpa. Foreign ownership in Algeria is limited to 49%-51%, under its investment law.