Actual situation and prospects for the development of the phosphate-raw material base of Russia

The article analyzes the state of the phosphate raw material base in Russia and its role in the economic development of the country and in domestic agriculture especially. The problems that prevent the creation of a modern powerful phosphate production capable of satisfying the existing demands of agriculture in phosphoric mineral fertilizers are highlighted. The possible directions of the development of the phosphorus industry in the regions for the near and distant prospects are analyzed. The aim of the article is to analyze the current state of the domestic mineral resource base to produce phosphorus fertilizers, the acute shortage of which hinders the development of the country's agriculture. Actual base for research was mainly processed materials from specialized scientific articles and publicly available publications. In addition, data collected by the authors during thirty years of studying phosphorite deposits in Russia and foreign countries were involved. The analysis of published materials of leading Russian producers of phosphorus products, mining companies, databases of specialized federal and regional geological companies. It is concluded that before the country's geological services, the most important task remains to identify deposits of high-quality phosphate ores, and especially in Siberia and the Russian Far East. Significant prospects for the development of these regions are opened by the Northern Sea Route. The planned pace of its development offers unique opportunities for the economic development of the Taimyr-Anabar region, where huge resources of apatite-bearing carbonatites of the Tomptor alkaline massif and Meimech-Kotuy province are concentrated.