Plymouth, Minn.-The Mosaic Co. said May 9 that it has completed the test run for the expansion of its Esterhazy, Saskatchewan, potash mines. A third-party audit confirmed the expansion adds an incremental 1.1 million mt of new annual capacity, bringing Esterhazy’s total annual capacity to approximately 5.3 million mt. The expansion was completed in late 2006 at a capital cost of approximately $35 million. Pursuant to an existing tolling arrangement, up to a quarter of incremental capacity will be supplied to a third party who participated in the funding of the project’s capital cost. “This successful expansion, both in terms of the cost and additional capacity, underscores our strong commitment to cost-effectively grow our Potash business,” said Jim Prokopanko, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mosaic. “With the Esterhazy expansion completed and now efficiently operating, we are pursuing several other capacity expansion projects at our potash mines that will help us further grow our business to meet projected increases in global demand for potash products.” Mosaic’s additional potash projects include adding 120,000 and 360,000 mt of annual incremental capacity by 2010 and 2012, respectively, at its Belle Plaine, Saskatchewan, operations. Additionally, Mosaic plans to add approximately 200,000 mt of incremental capacity at its Colonsay, Saskatchewan, mine by 2010. Other projects are also under consideration. Mosaic is one of the world’s leading potash producers, with approximately 13 percent of global potash capacity. Mosaic’s Esterhazy mine is the largest potash mine in the world.
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