Sev.en Global Investments (Sev.en), Prague, on Oct. 10 confirmed that it has completed the acquisition of Australia Salt Lake Potash Pty Ltd., the operating subsidiary of Salt Lake Potash (SO4) developing the Lake Way potash project in Western Australia (GM Sept. 23, p. 29).
The acquisition follows the administration and receivership process of SO4, where Sev.en reached a deal with SO4’s receivers and senior creditors on the purchase of SO4’s subsidiaries – Australia Salt Lake Potash Pty Ltd and Piper Preston Pty Ltd.
The Lake Way project is currently in the final stage of its development, with much of the required production infrastructure already in place.
“We continue to strengthen our market presence in Australia and are excited to enter one of its nascent commodity industries,” said Alan Svoboda, Sev.en CEO. “With ever growing pressure to increase global agricultural yields, we see strong potential in the global mineral fertilizer market, especially in potash, and are excited to play our role in ensuring sufficient global supply of this vital commodity.
“With the additional capital required to finalize the project ramp-up, we plan to start producing in about a year’s time,” he added. “This will not only benefit the project’s employees, local community, and suppliers, but also consumers worldwide.”
Once finalized, the project is expected to produce up to 245,000 mt/y of sulfate of potash (SOP). The company said this would make it the largest SOP producer in Australia and Southeast Asia, and position it among the leading global producers of the product.
Sev.en has appointed Mark Sykes as its Australia Country Manager. He will oversee Sev.en’s Australian portfolio of assets, along with building a pipeline of projects that will build on Sev.en’s presence in the mining and power sectors. The company said he has 30 years of experience in the natural resources and FMCG sectors. He holds a Mining Engineering degree from Curtin University and a Minerals Economic Masters from Macquarie University in Australia.