China Ships 30,000 Tonnes of Ammonia to Morocco for Fertilizer Production
A Belgian ship has opened a direct route between Nanjing and Morocco, via the Cape of Good Hope. The shipment highlights a dependency in Morocco’s industry: despite its vast phosphate reserves, the kingdom must import some raw materials to make fertilizer.
More than 10,000 nautical miles to travel, with 30,000 tonnes of liquid ammonia on board. On October 13, the ship Arlon left Nanjing, in eastern China, bound for Morocco. Its route runs through the Indian Ocean and around Africa via the Cape of Good Hope, according to Chinese supplier Jiangsu Andefu.
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The operation marks a first for the Chinese company, which is supplying a North African customer directly. The shipment involved the Qingjiang Logistics terminal and Andefu’s storage facilities. It took just two days to fill the ship’s tanks, the Nanjing transport bureau said.
Why is Morocco bringing this raw material from so far away? The kingdom has vast phosphate reserves, but the production of some fertilizers also requires ammonia. The product supplies the nitrogen essential to fertilizers such as DAP and MAP, which are widely used in agriculture.
The dependency is considerable. According to data from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Morocco imported around 1.8 million tonnes of ammonia in 2024. OCP, the global giant in phosphate fertilizers, buys the raw material on international markets.
A ship that runs on ammonia itself
The transport has another distinctive feature. Arlon belongs to a new generation of ships capable of using ammonia as fuel. Built in South Korea for Belgian shipowner Exmar, it can run on this product or on conventional marine fuels.
Before departing, the vessel was also supplied with ammonia for its propulsion. It is a sister ship to Antwerpen, which Exmar presented in June as the first oceangoing carrier equipped with this technology.
The new route comes as the global fertilizer market faces price pressures and constraints on raw-material supplies. For Moroccan industrial companies, adding suppliers helps reduce their exposure to disruptions that regularly affect major trade routes.
The kingdom is also working to produce green ammonia on its territory. OCP has set a target capacity of three million tonnes a year, with the aim of reducing purchases of conventional ammonia from abroad.
For this first shipment, Jiangsu Andefu identified the recipient as a “Moroccan customer.” The company has not disclosed its identity or the port of arrival. The cargo left China on October 13 and continues its journey to Morocco.
