A Saudi-Arabian Mining Company known as Ma’aden Marketing and Distribution has acquired 85% stake in the Meridian Group, a locally owned company that produces phosphate.

Ma’aden President and Chief Executive Officer Darren Christopher Davis confirmed that the company will fully acquire the remaining 15% in the next 4 years. Meanwhile the move has been attributed to expansion, as the company aims to add three million tonnes of phosphate fertilisers by 2025, according to Davis.

The Meridian Group distributes 500 000 tonnes of fertiliser across Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Zambia. The group has subsidiaries namely Farmers World Limited, Demeter Seed Limited, Malawi Fertiliser Company Limited, Agora Limited, Grain Securities Limited, Liwonde Property Investment Limited and Optichem (2000) Limited.