K+S secures potassium sulfate access

(Posted on 02/04/19)

K+S has entered into an agreement with the Australian company, Kalium Lakes, for the purchase of up to 90,000 tonnes of the specialty fertilizer potassium sulfate (SOP) per year. The agreement has a term of ten years and ensures that K+S has exclusive access to the first potassium sulfate production in Australia.

K+S is a customer-focused, independent minerals company for the Agriculture, Industry, Consumers, and Communities segments and wants to grow the EBITDA to € 3 billion by 2030. Our approximately 15,000 employees enable farmers to provide nutrition for the world, solutions that keep industries going, improve daily life for consumers and provide safety in winter.

“The agreement with Kalium Lakes fits perfectly to our Shaping 2030 strategy, which among other things provides for the expansion of the specialty business,” says Alexa Hergenröther, CEO of Operating Unit Europe+. “The additional quantities of potassium sulfate will supplement our product range from our own SOP production in Germany. At the same time, we can better serve existing customers and gain new customers.”

Kalium Lakes plans to develop an underground brine deposit in the Pilbara region of Western Australia and to produce potassium sulfate from the extracted brine by solar evaporation method. The final investment decision by Kalium Lakes will be taken in the second quarter of 2019.

Approximately 15 months are estimated for the construction of all necessary production facilities, so that the first significant quantities of potassium sulfate are expected by the end of 2020 / beginning of 2021. The deal does not require K+S to commit capital.

Potassium sulfate (SOP) is a higher-priced specialty fertilizer that is used especially for fruits such as mango and pineapple, as well as for vegetables and tobacco.

Kalium Lakes Limited is an exploration and development company focused on developing the Beyondie Potassium Sulfate project in Western Australia. The goal is to build a potassium sulfate production for domestic and foreign markets. There is currently no such production on the Australian continent.