JSC Silvinit could be forced to halt all shipments of potash within 20 days as a sinkhole grows near its current rail line, according to Russian press reports. Construction has begun on a 6 kilometer bypass; however, it is expected to take until Feb. 1, 2008, to complete.
“Scientists have found that the hole is moving at an average 2.5 meters daily. If this tendency continues, the hole could reach the railroad in 20 days,” Silvinit spokesman Anatoly Subbotin was quoted in The Moscow Times. At midweek, sources told Green Markets that at that time the hole was about 100 meters from the rail line, with expectations that the rail line would likely shut down should it get within 75 meters.
As reported last week, Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. announced it was putting new potash sales on hold until the dust clears on the situation (GM Oct. 29, p. 1). Other producers have pretty much followed suit, including Agrium Inc. and The Mosaic Co., as well as Belarusian Potash Corp.
In the meantime, the big three Saskatchewan producers all saw increases in the stock prices last week on Wall Street, and PotashCorp in particular received some hefty upgrades from analysts.