PhosCan Chemical Corp PCCLF

Morocco Beneath the Surface

[BennyFarms]

International Companies sourcing Phosphate from Moroocco better be careful. Headwinds up ahead. Morocco is currently  mining some of its this Lucrative Ferticlizer ingredient  for export from the occupied Western Sahara. The world's supply of phosphate is concentrated in just a handful of countries, with more than three-fourths of that in Morocco and Western Sahara. But exploiting Western Sahara's supply of this critical resource is controversial. Once a Spanish colony, Western Sahara has been occupied by Morocco since 1976, and roiled by regional power politics and an independence movement that waged a guerrilla war until a cease-fire in 1991. With Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara unrecognized by the UN, many in the international community argue that Morocco is violating international Law by exploiting the territory's resources – and that global companies should not be party to that.

Last year, the Norwegian government, which has the world's largest sovereign wealth fund, divested PotashCorp because of its purchase of Western Saharan phosphate. Several European banks have done the same. And the European Union last year ended a fishing agreement with Morocco, which included Western Sahara waters, because of concerns that it violated international law.