In 2000/01 1.292 million tons of phosphate were produced (ibid.), mainly
from the Upper Cretaceous layers at Safaga and El-Quseir on the Red Sea, but
in 2001 several of the quarries had to be closed there. Part of the Egyptian
production of phosphates is exported, mainly to South and East Asia, through
the port of Safaga, but most is used for the local production of agricultural
fertilizers, for which there exists a rising demand in Egypt. For many years
now, there have been plans to start production in Abu Tartur, which is situated
in the Western Desert between El-Kharga and Ed-Dakhla. About US$3 billion
have already been invested in this gigantic project, especially to establish the
necessary infrastructure, e.g. a railway line over 650 km to Safaga, a high-
voltage transmission line from Nag’ Hammadi and an extension to the port
of Safaga. Profitability will only be reached if 7 million tons of phosphate
can be exported yearly from Abu Tartur. The government is currently trying
to raise production to 600,000 tons annually with the help of 3,500 people
employed there. The phosphate layers of the Upper Cretaceous are, however,
not sufficiently thick, and the mining requires especially expensive techniques
owing to the geological structure of the deposits, and the phosphate type is
not very well suited to the production of fertilizers suitable to be used on
Egyptian soils. Several foreign investors, to whom the government would have
liked to sell the project, showed an interest, but no positive results have as
yet been activated (oral communication March 2000).