Golden Bay, New Zealand-Consortium partners Widespread Portfolios and Widespread Energy report that they are receiving strong interest in the license application progress of its Chatham Rise phosphate rock prospect from international mining companies and local fertilizer giants. The consortium applied in August 2007 for a prospecting permit over a 3,048 kilometer area 600 kilometers east of Christchurch, which includes significant seabed deposits of rock phosphate and other potentially valuable minerals. “We have now been approached by the major New Zealand fertilizer companies as well as two huge international mining groups,” says Chris Castle, managing director. “All appear to be very keen to be involved in investing in the project or buying what is extracted.” Approval for the prospecting permit has been delayed while the government develops proposed legislation for regulating environmental effects of activities in New Zealand’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Drafting of the legislation is now under way, and the Minister’s intention is to introduce a Bill into the House before the end of August. Fletcher Challenge Corp. and other companies explored the area first in the 1980s. Rapidly-increasing phosphate prices and advances in underwater mining technology means exploration for submarine mineral deposits is now much more feasible. Widespread says the phosphate resource may exceed 100 million mt (with a current market value of more than NZ$46 billion) and could prove to be an economically viable source of fertilizer depending on extraction costs. Widespread plans a two-year work program that, if successful, will be followed by more detailed exploration and evaluation. This will include feasibility studies updating the work already undertaken 25 years ago reflecting today’s new technology and different costs. The advances in technology include global positioning systems (GPS) that now make it possible to precisely mine the seabed with automated equipment. Widespread noted that its license application has been surrounded by a subsequent application of 71,750 sq km by Auckland company Chatham Phosphate Ltd. At present, all phosphate rock used in New Zealand comes from Morocco.
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain