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Potash/Phosphate

Sask. projecting $1.04B surplus amid rising resource revenues – by Stefanie Davis and Brendan Ellis (CTV News Saskatchewan – August 23, 2022)

https://regina.ctvnews.ca/

Saskatchewan is projecting a $1.04 billion surplus for 2022-23, with a large bump from non-renewable resource revenues projected. That figure is a $1.51 billion improvement from budget forecasts, which projected a $463 million deficit for the year.

“A strong economy and higher resource prices have meant a significant improvement in the province’s finances. That means we can balance the budget, pay down debt and help Saskatchewan people with the rising cost of living,” Finance Minister Donna Harpauer said.

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A remote Canadian province luxuriates in the global supply crunch (The Economist – August 18, 2022)

https://www.economist.com/

Saskatchewan is enjoying wild growth in the wake of war in Europe

Gerrid gust’s great-grandfather was from near Dubno, a town that is now in western Ukraine. He settled between the two biggest towns in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon and Regina, on a plot of 160 acres which he bought for C$10. The farm is now a patchwork of properties 100 times the size which Mr Gust runs with his father and brother. Each year they harvest wheat, lentils and rapeseed.

Every planting season 23-metre-wide “drillers” shoot seed and fertiliser directly into the soil for 16 hours a day. Then it is all down to the heavens. Nearly all of Saskatchewan’s crops depend on rain rather than irrigation. Last year “was desperately dry”, says Mr Gust.

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Trudeau doesn’t like the opposition to his fertilizer plan – by Brian Lilley (Toronto Sun – August 9, 2022)

https://torontosun.com/

It’s always interesting to hear Liberals accuse others of stoking division when that seems to be their bread and butter. This week it was Liberal MP Lloyd Longfield, a backbencher from Guelph, who was chosen to be the face of a column on fertilizer that accused opponents of the Trudeau government’s plan of stoking division for political gain.

He, and the government he serves, might want to look in the mirror. If you haven’t heard, the Trudeau Liberals want Canadian farmers to reduce their emissions from fertilizer, specifically nitrous oxide emissions, to 30% below 2020 levels by 2030.

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Nutrien makes Ken Seitz its third chief executive in less than three years – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – August 8, 2022)

https://financialpost.com/

Seitz takes the helm while Nutrien is benefiting from the tailwind of some of the most favourable market conditions in years

Nutrien Ltd. named Ken Seitz as its next chief executive — the third person to hold the position since April 2021. Seitz had been acting on an interim basis since January, when the Saskatoon, Sask.-based fertilizer giant abruptly announced the termination of its second chief executive in less than a year without providing any context for either exit.

Unlike his predecessors, Seitz takes the helm while Nutrien is benefiting from the tailwind of some of the most favourable market conditions in years, as potash and other fertilizer prices are highly elevated as a result of supply constraints primarily caused by the fallout from the conflict in Ukraine.

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Nutrien CEO says Ukraine war will drive product demand for years – by Amanda Stephenson (Canadian Press/Global News – August 4, 2022)

https://globalnews.ca/

Saskatoon-based fertilizer giant Nutrien Ltd. surged to all-time high profits in the first six months of 2022 as the war in Ukraine destabilized agriculture markets and heightened global food security fears.

The Canadian company, which is the largest fertilizer producer in the world, raked in US$5 billion in profits in the first half of the year as crop input prices soared to multi-year highs.

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Trudeau pushes ahead on fertilizer reduction as provinces and farmers cry foul – by Brian Lilley (Toronto Sun – July 22, 2022)

https://torontosun.com/

Provincial agriculture ministers are expressing frustration with the Trudeau government over plans to effectively reduce fertilizer use by Canada’s farmers in the name of fighting climate change.A meeting of federal and provincial ministers wrapped up in Saskatoon on Friday with several provinces saying they are disappointed.

The federal government is looking to impose a requirement to reduce nitrous oxide emissions from fertilizers saying it is a greenhouse gas contributing to climate change. While the Trudeau government says they want a 30% reduction in emissions, not fertilizer, farm producer groups say that at this point, reducing nitrous oxide emissions can’t be done without reducing fertilizer use.

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BHP accelerates work on its Saskatchewan potash mine as prices soar – by Gabriel Friedman (Financial Post – July 19, 2022)

https://financialpost.com/

Mining giant aims to start production year early in 2026

BHP Group Ltd. has gone from lukewarm to hot on its Jansen potash mine in Saskatchewan, announcing Tuesday that it is working to accelerate first production by a year to 2026, and that it intends to speed up future expansions as potash prices continue to soar.

The Australian mining giant also reported in its year-end operational review that work on Jansen’s shaft, which already runs one-kilometre deep, was completed in June at a total cost of US$2.97 billion.

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Nutrien to acquire Brazilian fertilizer company Casa do Adubo in continued push into Latin America – Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – July 20, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Nutrien Ltd. is buying Brazilian retail fertilizer company Casa do Adubo S.A. as it forges ahead on an expansion into Latin America despite a difficult global economic environment.

Saskatoon-based Nutrien, the world’s biggest fertilizer company, did not disclose financial terms for the deal, but said it would add roughly US$400-million in sales and expand its reach in Brazil to 13 states from five.

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Production to begin at Manitoba’s first potash mine – by Tyson Off (Sask Today – July 4, 2022)

https://www.sasktoday.ca/

Developed by the Potash and Agri Development Corporation of Manitoba.

RUSSELL – Manitoba’s first potash mine is set to begin production this summer at the Russell McAuley Deposit.

“It’s a private entity called Padcom (Potash and Agri Development Corporation of Manitoba) who has worked for…quite a few years on developing a potash mine in Manitoba,” said Cheryl Kingdon-Chartier, Mayor of Russell, Manitoba, adding, “that has now come to fruition – they’re hoping to start production, I believe, this summer.”

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BHP pivots toward ‘future-facing’ commodities with Saskatchewan potash project – by Andrew Willis (Globe and Mail – June 20, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

In building the world’s largest potash mine in Saskatchewan, BHP CEO Mike Henry looks to heal old wounds and pivot the global giant away from oil and gas

Chief Bryon Bitternose was driving north across the Saskatchewan prairie this week toward two white towers that pierce the landscape – twin elevator shafts that mark the site of what will soon be the world’s largest potash mine. He took a phone call and started laughing.

The source of his amusement? Being asked to sketch the George Gordon First Nation’s history with Melbourne-based global commodities giant BHP Group Ltd. BHP-N, owner of the Jansen mine taking shape near his reserve. Mr. Bitternose chuckled as he said, “The relationship didn’t start real well. We first met in court.”

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Feds give up to $100 million to BHP to reduce emissions at Jansen potash mine – by Zak Vescera (Saskatoon Star Phoenix – June 13, 2022)

https://thestarphoenix.com/

The company claims the Saskatchewan mine will be the biggest and most sustainable in the world when it starts production in 2026.

The Canadian government will partner with Australian mining giant BHP Group Ltd. on a Saskatchewan mega-project they claim will be the biggest and most environmentally sustainable potash mine in the world.

Federal minister François-Philippe Champagne says Canada will give up to $100 million to BHP to cut emissions, reduce water use and diversify hiring at its Jansen project, a long-awaited mine about 140 kilometres east of Saskatoon that officials say will create thousands of jobs and further Saskatchewan’s position as a potash producer at a time of soaring global demand for the vital fertilizer ingredient.

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Nutrien plans major potash production hike as war in Ukraine exerts relentless pressure on global supplies – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – June 9, 2022)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Nutrien Ltd. is planning a major ramp up in potash production, as the war in Ukraine exerts relentless pressure on global supplies of the key fertilizer.

The world’s biggest fertilizer producer, based in Saskatoon, said on Thursday that it intends to boost its annual potash production to 18 million tonnes by 2025 – about 21.5 per cent higher than current levels. This year, Nutrien expects to produce about 14.8 million tonnes, a figure that had already been revised upward.

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Nuinsco publishes first resource for Prairie Lake critical minerals in Ontario – by Jaskson Chen (Canadian Mining Journal -June 1, 2022)

https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/

Nuinsco Resources (CSE: NWI; OTC: NWIFF) has published an initial mineral resource estimate (MRE) for its Prairie Lake critical minerals and phosphate project. The property is located 28 km north of the Trans-Canada Highway and 45 km northwest of town of Marathon, Ont.

The initial Prairie Lake resource is based on 73 inclined diamond drill holes performed between 1969 and 2010, for a total of 12,180 metres. Additionally, surface trenching totalling 2,068 metres is also included in the estimate.

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Nigeria buys emergency Canadian potash to replace lost Russian supply – by Julia Payne (Financial Post/Reuters – May 3, 2022)

https://financialpost.com/

LAGOS — Nigeria had to buy emergency supplies of Canadian potash in April after the country was unable to import the key fertilizer from Russia due to the impact of Western sanctions, the head of Nigeria’s sovereign investment authority NSIA said.

Uche Orji, the head of NSIA, declined to comment on prices. However, spot prices today are up more than 250% for deliveries to west Africa compared to last year, according to commodities pricing agency Argus Media, dealing a further blow to the country’s finances.

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This Canadian mining company is sitting on billions worth of potash. Inside the battle that has angry shareholders alleging vote rigging and stock sabotage – by Steve Buist (Toronto Star – April 30, 2022)

https://www.thestar.com/

Karnalyte Resources Inc. CEO denies allegations, says the company strives to put shareholders best interest “at the forefront of everything.”

Down the hall they marched and into the conference room at the Hampton Inn near Saskatoon’s airport, four armed city police officers acting as a security detail for the board of directors of a small Saskatchewan mining company called Karnalyte Resources Inc.

It was June 7, 2018, and Karnalyte’s annual general meeting was about to start. A handful of frustrated investors hoped to dethrone the board they believed was mismanaging the company. Including the police and the company’s board members, there were maybe 30 people in the room, 40 tops.

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