Ras Al-Khair (Also called Ras Al-Zour, Ras Azzour) is a town and port currently under development[1] on the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia 60 km north of Jubail. It is also known under its project name of "Minerals Industrial City"
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The new city, RAZMIC (Ras Al Zawr Mineral Industrial City), is planned to exploit the mineral deposites of phosphate and bauxite found within Saudi Arabia.[2] Therefore a di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) plant will be built, an aluminium smelter, an ammonia plant, an alumina refinery and facilities to produce phosphoric and sulphuric acid. Power will be supplied by a new combined 2,350 MW power station and desalination plant.[3]
The official ground breaking for the aluminium project by the Saudi Arabian Mining Company (MA'ADEN) and Alcoa was on 19 June 2010.[4] The project is scheduled to be completed by 2014. Among other projects a residential village for the MAADEN employees was built with 500 housing units.[5]
Ras Al-Zour will be linked by the Saudi Railways Organization to the bauxite mines at Zabirah with a new railway line branch of the North-South Project.[6] Later the line will be extended to meet the line from Riyadh via Buraidah to Haditha at the so called Zubairah Junction.[7] As part of the Saudi Landbridge Project another line will connect the new port to Jubail and to Dammam. Thus Ras Al-Zour will be connected to the bauxite mine near Zabirah, the phosphate deposits near Jalamid and the agricultural center at Al-Basyata as well as to the oil processing facilities via the Jubail line.
The proposed port is thought to become a major export hub for aluminium products and ammonium phosphate.
In July 2011, King Abdullah has changed the name of Ras Al-Zour to Ras Al-Khair, President of the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Thunayan said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency on Wednesday 6 July.[8][9]
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