Jeddah -- Saudi Arabian Mining Co. (Maaden) announced that the railway project which it is building to transport phosphate and bauxite ore project is expected to be in operation by the end of this year. The company said 800 kilometers of the 1486 km railway has been executed.

The mineral line would link the phosphate mine at Al Jalamid and the bauxite mine at AzZabirah to the processing facilities at Ras Azzour, on the Gulf coast.Maaden has signed a contract worth $74.13 million with the Indian government firm Rites to operate the railway, SPA said. The contract would last till the end of 2013.

Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Maaden), in a joint venture with (SABIC), is doubling capacity at its Saudi fertilizer plant to 6 million tons per year. The project will use phosphate from a deposit at Al Jalamid and local gas and sulfur supplies to manufacture the fertilizer diammonium phosphate. Maaden is also building with US aluminum giant Alcoa a $10.8 billion aluminum complex at Ras Azzour which would start production in 2013.

Maaden has said both the phosphate and aluminum projects rely on the development and operation of a port to export DAP and ammonia for the phosphate project and for the import of raw materials, and export of alumina and aluminum for the aluminum project.