Toronto-PhosCan Chemical Corp. said Dec. 10 that while the phosphate fertilizer market may be stabilizing, it believes it may be several years before the market, together with capital markets, returns to levels that will support the resumption of full-scale development of its Martison Phosphate Project. The project consists of a phosphate deposit and a planned mine, beneficiation plant, phosphoric acid plant, and solid fertilizer production facility. The deposit is 70 kilometers north of Heart, Ont. PhosCan said it is prudent to complete only the reduced development plan for the project and preserve its cash until it has reasonable confidence that it will be able to raise the additional US$1 billion of debt and equity capital required to take the project to construction and production. PhosCan said it has a significant amount of uncommitted cash on hand and has been actively sourcing and reviewing a broad range of corporate development opportunities that it believes would enhance shareholder value. These are primarily in the natural resources sector, and more recently have focused on oil and gas. PhosCan’s goal is to use the cash on opportunities with existing cash flows and long-term growth potential. As of Oct. 31, 2009, PhosCan said it held approximately US$9.6 million in cash and cash equivalents out of a total of $69.3 million of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments.
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