Fifty years of experience in the development of phosphate

ore
Following many years of raw phosphate exporting, the Tunisian
government undertook to process phosphate ore and to exploit it in a
more profitable oriented way.
This brought to the creation of a domestic industry for phosphoric
acid and fertilizer production, eventually resulting in the Groupe
Chimique Tunisien (GCT), which is the result of the merger and absorption of some five
companies occurring between 1952 and 1992 as indicated in the following table :

1952

Startup of TSP plant in SFAX under the name of SIAPE

1972

Startup of Acid (MGA) plant in GABES under the name of ICM

1979

Startup of the DAP plant in GABES under the name of SAEPA

1983

Startup of the AN plant by SAEPA

1985

Startup of ENGRAIS DE GABES (EG) for the production of DAP in

GABES
Creation of Industrie Chimique de GAFSA (ICG) for TSP production at
M'DHILLA

1988

Creation of the SKHIRA plant for the production of Phosphoric Acid

and MGA

1989

Absorption of ICM, EG and ICG by SIAPE

1992

Merger of SIAPE and SAEPA and creation therefore of GCT

1994

Merger of Chairmanship of CPG and GCT by appointing a single

common Chairman and General Manager

1996

Merger of commercial structures of CPG and GCT.

This merger has enabled the phosphate sector to assume an outstanding place in the
Tunisian economy by providing direct employment for about 4300 people and by trade
balancing. Indirect employment profited equally in as much as rail and sea transport and
subcontracting were boosted.
The industrial facilities described above have
contributed in a considerable way in the promotion and
development of southern Tunisia. Concurrently with
the development of this industry and in order to go
along the strictest national and international regulations
in the field of environment protection, GCT has
launched a vast program against pollution within all its
production sites in order to contain atmospheric and
solid wastes.