Ministers of Transport and Industry Agree to Increase Rail Transport of Phosphate
Tunisian Ministers of Transport, Rachid Amri, and Industry, and Energy, Fatma Thabet Chiboub, agreed on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, to increase the number of wagons dedicated to phosphate transport to 230 by June and 340 by July 2025.
This decision was made during a joint meeting held the previous day in Skhira (Sfax Governorate), attended by representatives from the Gafsa Phosphate Company (CPG) and the Tunisian Chemical Group (GCT). According to a statement from the Ministry of Industry, loading and unloading times will also be reduced to four and six hours, respectively, thanks to better coordination between the concerned parties.
Furthermore, a proposal from the Ministry of Transport to establish nighttime operations was validated to further fluidify the logistics chain.
The two ministers set Monday, May 12, 2025, as the deadline to resolve the dredging issue of the Oued Kef Edour, at the Thalja station level. A monitoring committee, gathering representatives from the concerned and the three involved companies, will be set up to plan weekly routes and provide real-time monitoring of rail operations.
On this occasion, the Minister of Transport highlighted the benefits of rail transport in terms of reducing, security, and environmental impact. He also called for intensified efforts to achieve the objectives set within the national strategy for modernizing rail transport.
For her part, the Minister of Industry stressed the importance of coordination between the different stakeholders to revitalize the phosphate sector, from extraction to export, in line with the priorities set for the 2025-2028 period. She advocated for reinforced support to enable the TIFERT company's overcoming of its current challenges.
The two ministers indicated that they will ensure regular follow-up of the decisions made, with a series of meetings scheduled in the coming days.
The meeting was attended by the Governor of Sfax, the CEOs of SNCFT, CPG, and GCT, as well as several officials from the concerned ministries.
