Tunisian Phosphate Exports See 15% Increase in 2025
Tunisian phosphate exports and their derivatives recorded a significant 15% improvement in 2025, compared to a 26.3% decline in 2024, which impacted the country's financial and commercial balances, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INS).
Government Efforts to Reposition the Mining Sector
This improvement is part of the government's efforts to reposition the mining sector as a strategic driver of growth, particularly in light of the need to reduce the trade deficit and strengthen foreign exchange earnings. In 2010, the mining sector accounted for 4% of the country's GDP and 9% of its exports. Phosphate production reached a record level in 2010, with 8 million tons, before stabilizing at 3.5 million tons over the past decade.
Ambitious Plan to Increase Production
In response to this situation, the government has adopted an ambitious plan to reach a production level of 14 million tons by 2030. The plan focuses on improving production, transportation, and infrastructure in the phosphate and derivatives sector. The 2025 data revealed that political will and effective management can guarantee a recovery in production rates.
Presidential Call to Action
President Kais Saied has called for the sector to not only regain its former production pace but to surpass it, while ensuring the full rights of workers and taking into account the difficulties of working in the mining sector. He also emphasized the need to rebuild public infrastructure.
New Strategy for Phosphate Washing
During an interview with the Minister of Industry, Mines, and Energy, Fatma Thabet Chiboub, the President highlighted the importance of establishing a new strategy for phosphate washing using treated wastewater instead of potable water. This approach has proven effective in several countries and would help preserve water resources.
Focus on High-Value Added Derivatives
The focus will be on strengthening investment in the production of high-value-added phosphate derivatives, including ordinary and purified phosphoric acid, triphosphate, and high-quality monophosphate, as well as diammonium phosphate (DAP) and monoammonium phosphate. This will be done in accordance with global demand and to meet national demand, particularly from the agricultural sector.
Non-Phosphate Mines as a Lever for Development
Non-phosphate mines constitute a lever for equitable and inclusive development, given their contribution to creating development projects and economic dynamics, as well as job creation in governorates with high unemployment rates.
A Strategic Sector Regaining its Luster
In 2025, numerous reforms and practical measures were implemented, significantly contributing to the improvement in production, which approached the objectives set in the action plan approved for sector companies for the 2025-2030 period. These objectives include reaching a production level of 5.3 million tons and transforming 4.1 million tons of phosphate.
Confirmation of Production Improvement
The improvement in production was confirmed by the Head of Government, Sarra Zaafrani Zenzri, during the presentation of the government's declaration and economic budget for 2026. She recalled that the government worked in 2025 to develop the production capacities of this strategic product, adding that forecasts indicate an annual production of around 5 million tons.
Factors Contributing to Results
The main factors that led to these results include the improvement in phosphate extraction activity in open-pit mines, thanks to the start of activity of machines acquired in 2024, and the resumption of activity at the Redeyef washing plant from March 10, 2025.
Challenges and Future Prospects
Despite these significant achievements, the sector still faces numerous challenges, including the lack of industrial water, particularly in Redeyef and Oum Laarayes, and problems with the evacuation of muddy waters from washing plants.
Future Development Plan
The development plan for the phosphate sector for the next five years focuses on progressively increasing production rates from 2026, with a production capacity of around 5.5 million tons, to reach 13.6 million tons by 2030. This includes the gradual return to exporting dried phosphate, especially with the rise in global phosphate prices, which will enable the sector to regain its place in the global market.
Export Targets
The annual export capacity is expected to reach around 300,000 tons in 2026 and 1 million tons by 2030, according to the 2026 economic budget. This requires working to strengthen the capacity to transport phosphate to production centers, provide industrial water, and resolve the problems of large projects, particularly the Oum El Khecheb 1 project, in addition to launching the realization of the new production unit at Oum El Khecheb 2.
