Moroccan success for Weir Minerals

Company wins major £8.6 million phosphate pipeline pump supply contract in Morocco

WEIR Minerals have secured a contract to supply pumps for a new 200km-long pipeline in Morocco which will transport phosphate rock from inland mines at Khourbga to the coastal port of Jorf Lasfar for processing and shipping.

The company was chosen by Turkey-based contractors Tekfen, who are carrying out the project for Office Cherifien des Phosphates (OCP), the state-owned Moroccan phosphates firm. OCP export around £2.85 billion worth of phosphate rock and derivative products each year – approximately 25% of the country’s total exports.

Weir Minerals will supply centrifugal Warman high-pressure pumps, which are specifically designed for use in-series transporting applications, for three pumping stations along the pipeline’s route.

Several 500 U-HTPP high-pressure transport pump systems will be positioned in series at the start of the route fed by booster stations – with additional 12/10 T-AHPP pumps also positioned in series. Weir Minerals will supply standby pumps.

Scheduled to commence operation in 2013, the new pipeline will replace OCP’s current railway freight transportation method and help to significantly increase the mine’s production output.

John Davies, sales and marketing director at Weir Minerals, said: ‘This is a major project as it will be one of the longest phosphate slurry transport pipelines ever constructed, with the majority of the distance having a diameter of over 91cm.

‘While this is the first contract we have delivered for Tekfen, Weir Minerals is a long-standing supplier for OCP and Warman pumps are used extensively across their operations.’