JPMC Executes Dramatic Turnaround, Targets $1.1 Billion Expansion Projects

Amman: The Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (JPMC) has reversed multi-million-dollar losses to achieve unprecedented financial and operational records between 2018 and 2025 following a comprehensive structural overhaul, its chairman said on Sunday.

According to Jordan News Agency, Mohammad Thneibat, Chairman of JPMC, stated during a panel discussion that the state-backed mining firm overcame severe historical administrative and financial crises by modernizing operations, boosting production efficiency, and instilling corporate governance transparency. The panel, titled "A Reading into the Jordanian Mining Landscape: Phosphate as a Model," was organized by the Jordan Society for Science and Culture and moderated by the society's president, Samir Habashneh.

Thneibat revealed that the company transitioned from a net loss of approximately JD90 million ($127 million) at the end of 2016 to accumulating total net profits of JD2.647 billion ($3.73 billion) over the eight years spanning 2018 to 2025. The performance marks a 231% increase when compared to the company's entire historical cumulative profits between its inception in 1954 and 2017, which stood at JD887.8 million.

The chairman added that JPMC completely liquidated its debt to zero by 2022, down from an outstanding liability of JD411 million at the end of 2016. The operational turnaround allowed the company to amass cash liquidity in bank deposits totaling JD1.6 billion by the close of 2025.

According to Thneibat, the strategic roadmap implemented since 2017 focused on eliminating mining monopolies; opening competitive bidding to drive down production costs by roughly 40% annually; deploying integrated automation technologies; and shifting energy consumption from heavy fuel oil to natural gas. The restructuring also prioritized capital expenditure expansion, sustainable equipment maintenance, workforce succession planning, and advanced technical training. The company has drawn up an expansive strategic roadmap stretching to 2040 to anchor its global market shares.

Financial indicators show JPMC sales surged 115% to reach JD1.741 billion in 2025 compared to JD811 million in 2018. Total assets grew 111% to JD2.367 billion by 2025, while total equity rose 195% to JD2.009 billion over the same timeframe. Driven by the robust balance sheet, the company's market capitalization on the Amman Stock Exchange jumped to JD8.574 billion ($12.09 billion) as of May 10, up from JD234 million in 2018 and JD181 million in 2016.

Total cash dividends distributed to shareholders during the 2018-2025 window stood at JD1.681 billion. Capitalization of reserves via bonus share issues occurred in phases, with a 200% stock dividend in 2022 raising capital to JD247.5 million, followed by a 21.2% issue in 2024 to hit JD300 million, and a 66.7% issue in 2025 to bring total paid-up capital to JD500 million.

Operational volumes recorded similar growth, with raw phosphate extraction increasing 52% to 12.14 million tonnes in 2025 from 8 million tonnes in 2018. Phosphoric acid output rose 51% to 1.36 million tonnes, while phosphate fertilizer volumes climbed 34% to 1 million tonnes by 2025. The institutional recovery pushed JPMC to the 51st position in Forbes' annual ranking of the Top 100 Companies in the Middle East and North Africa, climbing twenty spots from its previous 71st position.

Looking ahead, Thneibat highlighted an aggressive $1.1 billion pipeline of downstream manufacturing ventures to maximize the value-added potential of local raw minerals and generate domestic employment. The company successfully re-entered several closed markets while securing new international export destinations.

The upcoming capital projects include a $600 million industrial complex in Al-Shidya to manufacture phosphoric acid and specialized fertilizers, developed in joint partnership with the Arab Potash Company. Additionally, JPMC is partnering with Turkiye's Transbosphore to build the $500 million Jordan-Turkiye Fertilizer Company plant in Aqaba for phosphoric acid production.

Further expansions include a $250 million investment to upgrade the Indo-Jordan Chemicals Company plant, lifting phosphoric acid output capacity to 1,500 tonnes per day from 900 tonnes alongside a new 2,300-tonne daily capacity sulfuric acid unit. The firm is also building a $100 million phosphate warehouse infrastructure in Aqaba to add 150,000 tonnes of storage capacity, alongside a $40 million high-safety double-wall ammonia storage tank facility.

Management projects these industrial ventures will yield an additional $1 billion in annual sales revenue and raise net profits by approximately 200 million dinars upon commissioning while providing 1,000 direct corporate jobs and boosting treasury revenues via corporate income tax and mining royalties.

Abdul Wahab AlRowwad, Chief Executive Officer of JPMC, reaffirmed that the company is actively executing this portfolio of expansions in Aqaba and Eshidiya to consolidate industrial integration across its manufacturing supply chain and deepen regional and international joint ventures. Samir Habashneh, president of the hosting society, commended the JPMC corporate transformation, citing it as an exemplary national success story in corporate governance, fiscal discipline, and strategic asset management for both public and private sector institutions.