South Australia-based Centrex Ltd. has signed a binding offtake agreement with New Zealand-based fertilizer cooperative Ravensdown Ltd. for the sale of phosphate rock from its Ardmore phosphate mine located south of Mount Isa in northwest Queensland.
The offtake agreement, which began on July 1, is for a term of two-and-a-half years, with Ravensdown committed to purchase approximately15,000 mt of phosphate rock in the first year, Centrex reported in a July 3 ASA release.
Allocations for the subsequent year will be mutually agreed upon by the two parties, as is the price per ton, which will be negotiated within 45 days prior to each quarter for the following quarter.
Centrex said it has set aside 20% of production at Ardmore to fulfil its projected allocation under the offtake agreement with Ravensdown. The offtake deal follows a trial shipment to the New Zealand fertilizer cooperative in April 2022.
The deal is Centrex’s third offtake agreement for the Ardmore mine. The company announced the signing of a market agreement with South Korea’s Samsung C&T in February, shipping the first consignment in May (GM May 26, p. 32).
In March, Centrex inked a binding offtake with Ameropa Australia Pty Ltd. (GM March 31, p. 27), and also signed a binding offtake deal with New Zealand’s other fertilizer cooperative, Balance Agri Nutrients Ltd.
Mining started at Ardmore in August 2021. The operation has a current capacity of 120,000 mt/y, but Centrex is pursuing an expansion to 524,000 mt/y.
Ardmore is a satellite deposit to the main Duchess mining operations, which feeds the adjacent Phosphate Hill ammonium phosphate fertilizer plant owned by Southern Cross Fertilisers Pty Ltd./Incitec Pivot Ltd. Phosphate reserves at Ardmore provide for a 10-year mining life. The Duchess mine produces about 2.1 million mt/y, with more than 50 years of mine life remaining.