OMA member Sifto Canada helps upgrade town of Goderich’s infrastructure — and future prospects

This article was provided by the Ontario Mining Association (OMA), an organization that was established in 1920 to represent the mining industry of the province.

Ontario Mining Association member Sifto Canada is joining forces with the Town of Goderich and the Goderich Port Management Corp. in a public-private partnership to expand and enhance the local port.  The three parties have signed a memorandum of understanding for the anticipated $47 million project.

The plan envisions the creation of six hectares of new industrial land at the harbour, new docks for ships carrying salt, aggregate and agricultural products, new storage facilities, repairs to existing port infrastructure and the installation of new breakwalls. The project will create more than 500 construction jobs.  The plan will be finalized following the completion of satisfactory environmental assessments, engineering studies and feasibility evaluations.

The Goderich port improvement project will be funded through a $15.7 million grant from the provincial government, funds from the Goderich Port Management Corp.’s major maintenance account and port usage fees.  Sifto is expected to pay about $19 million in additional port usage fees over a five year period.

“Together, we have developed a public-private vision to bring new businesses, jobs and opportunities to the Goderich community while providing Sifto with additional storage capacity, particularly during the winter months,” said Rowland Howe, Director of Corporate Engineering, Strategic Projects and Canada country executive for Compass Minerals.  “We are excited about what this could mean for Goderich and Sifto.”

“The port expansion would allow us to continue to produce rock salt during the winter months when the port is closed due to ice, giving us more consistent production and employment levels throughout the year and fully leverage our recent $70 million expansion at the salt mine,” added Mr. Howe.

“The port has great economic significance to the town of Goderich and the surrounding area.  This announcement not only protects existing local jobs, it holds great potential for future investments in our community,” said Deb Shewfelt, Mayor of the Town of Goderich.  “I am pleased the years we have spent working on this project will result in a future of increased economic activity in our area.”

Sifto Canada operates the world’s largest underground salt mine in Goderich and it is Canada’s leading provider and marketer of highway and consumer deicing salt.  It also provides high quality food salt, water care minerals, agricultural minerals and other consumer and industrial salt and mineral products.  The company’s mine and evaporation plant in Goderich employ about 500 people.  Sifto is a wholly owned subsidiary of Compass Minerals based in Kansas City.

Goderich is the only seaway depth port on the east side of Lake Huron.  Ontario’s 15 leading ports account for about 30% of Canada’s domestic marine trade and 17% of Canada’s international port trade. 

Mining companies are responsible, solution-providing partners in society.  They do more than find, extract and process minerals essential to our modern lifestyle.  They add great value to the quality of life in their communities and beyond.  

July 8, 2011

In 2010, Ontario produced 6,819, 725 tonnes of salt.  The value of the salt produced was $383.4 million.

Salt was the seventh most valuable mineral product for Ontario in 2010.