Mining in Saskatchewan helps feed the world (Regina Leader-Post – May 24, 2014)

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Potash mining in Saskatchewan is more than a proud tradition. It fuels Saskatchewan and Canada’s economic engine and provides thousands of career opportunities in science and technology. Perhaps most importantly, potash fertilizers help grow crops to feed families all over the world. While recent market conditions have resulted in reduced global demand for potash, the investments made in both expansion (brownfield) and new start-up (greenfield) projects by mining companies in Saskatchewan will ensure that these operations are able to respond quickly to future market demands.

Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. (PotashCorp) In 2003, PotashCorp embarked on a major expansion initiative that includes projects at each of their operating mines. By its anticipated 2015 completion, this approximately $8.3 billion expansion program is expected to increase PotashCorps’s sustained output capacity to 18.1 million tonnes. All but one of PotashCorp’s Canadian operations are in Saskatchewan.

The Rocanville expansion is the largest of all PotashCorp projects and, because of its close proximity to the US border, it will play an instrumental role in serving PotashCorp’s North American customers’ needs. This expansion will add a new shaft at Scissor’s Creek, approximately 15 km from the existing site as well as a new mill to process the additional ore. A 500,000 tonne storage warehouse – one of the largest buildings by square footage in the world – in addition to improvements to the site’s rail loading system, is part of this expansion. Upon completion of ramp-up in 2015, operational capability is expected to increase to approximately 5.7 million tonnes annually, making it one of the largest potash production facilities in the world.

At the Allan Mine, the expansion projects reintroduced 400,000 tonnes of previously idled potash capability, expanded compaction ability, improved product loadout capabilities and increased operational capability to approximately 2.7 million tonnes. The latter project involved modifying the production headframe, including larger hoists, skips and conveyers and expanding the mill to include new process control equipment and construction of a new substation and power supply system.

At Cory, the two-phase project includes construction of a new mill that will enable the facility to produce red potash products in addition to its current white products. The project also included a new production headframe complete with higher capacity hoists, skips, bins and conveyors as well as improvements to load-out and storage infrastructure, and the addition of a new electrical substation and several new mining machines.

At Lanigan, the debottlenecking and compaction expansion project focused on refurbishing a mill that had been idle since the 1980s and was completed in 2008. This project included the construction of new mill structures and equipment, upgrading of mine hoists and skips and the addition of other underground equipment to support increased production.

At Patience Lake, PotashCorp’s only solution mine, the expansion added 20 injection wells and the pumping and piping systems required to serve them, enabling more brine to be brought to surface.

Mosaic Mosaic is one of the world’s leading crop nutrition companies with a focus on potash and phosphate production. It is the secondlargest potash producer in Saskatchewan with the capacity to produce over 10 million tonnes of potash annually. Mosaic’s potash expansion program is a multi-year effort consisting of several distinct projects at each of its operating mine sites. The current and completed expansion projects are expected to increase annual potash capacity by almost three million tonnes.

Mosaic operates three potash mines in Saskatchewan; the Belle Plaine, Colonsay and Esterhazy operations.

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