en.Wedoany.com Reported - In July this year, the 4 million tons/year mining project at the Yangliudong Phosphate Mine in Leizu Town, Yuan'an County, Yichang City, Hubei Province, China, entered the preparatory stage for construction. The total investment of the project is 5.32 billion yuan, with proven phosphate rock resources of 206 million tons, a designed mining scale of 4 million tons/year, and a mine service life of 54 years.
The mine's construction unit is Yuan'an Xinghua Mining Co., Ltd., with a shareholding structure of 45% held by Xingfa Group, 40% by Wanhua Chemical, and 15% by Yichang City Development. Xingfa Group is a leading phosphate chemical enterprise in China, with phosphate rock reserves of 800 million tons; Wanhua Chemical is a global chemical giant, accelerating its layout in the new energy materials sector. The joint investment by the two major enterprises reflects that high-quality phosphate rock resources are increasingly concentrating on leading integrated industry chain companies.
The Yangliudong Phosphate Mine covers an area of 10.0191 square kilometers, with an average grade of 23.45%. The minable ore bodies include two layers, Ph₁ and Ph₂, where Ph₁ is the main mining layer accounting for 60%, Ph₂ is the secondary mining layer accounting for 40%, and the Ph₃ layer is temporarily not utilized. The designed production scale is 4 million tons/year, with a service life of 54 years (including a 5-year construction period). The project has completed reserve filing and development project approval, is currently undergoing environmental impact assessment public consultation, and is planned to start construction in 2027.
It is estimated that the mine has economic reserves of approximately 300 million tons, with an economic value of about 200 billion yuan.
A similar project, the Maping Phosphate Mine, also located in Leizu Town, was put into production at the end of 2025, with the same production scale of 4 million tons/year, reserves of 315 million tons, and a service life of 53 years. It is the largest single underground mining operation completed and put into production in China.
On June 15, 2026, Decree No. 839 of the State Council officially took effect, listing phosphate rock in the national strategic mineral resources catalog. Against the backdrop of high sulfur prices and increased raw material cost pressure, owning phosphate rock resources has become an important foundation for the cost advantage of phosphate chemical enterprises. Xingfa Group, with 800 million tons of phosphate rock reserves, has further consolidated its resource security capability by acquiring the Yangliudong mining rights this time. With the successive implementation of the two 4-million-ton-level phosphate mines, Maping and Yangliudong, Leizu Town in Yuan'an County is becoming one of the most densely concentrated areas for phosphate rock production capacity in China.
