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52-462: The company was the world's largest potash producer and the third largest producer of nitrogen and phosphate, three primary crop nutrients used to produce fertilizer. At the end of 2011, the company controlled twenty percent of the world's potash production capacity, two percent of nitrogen production capacity and five percent of phosphate supply. The company was part-owner of Canpotex , which manages all potash exporting from Saskatchewan . It also had

104-688: A catalyst for synthetic rubber manufacturing. Also combined with silica sand to produce potassium silicate , sometimes known as waterglass , for use in paints and arc welding electrodes. These non-fertilizer uses have accounted for about 15% of annual potash consumption in the United States. No substitutes exist for potassium as an essential plant nutrient and as an essential nutritional requirement for animals and humans. Manure and glauconite (greensand) are low-potassium-content sources that can be profitably transported only short distances to crop fields. Jochen Tilk Jochen Tilk

156-477: A price floor in 1969. This plan was popular among the companies, which could now charge monopoly prices. The NDP government that was elected in 1971 in Saskatchewan was dissatisfied with this plan as the huge profits went to the companies rather than the government, and it wasn't sustainable in the long term. In 1974 the government passed a new potash regulation scheme, that included a reserve tax . This plan

208-401: A factor in the growing potash and fertilizer use. With more money in the household budget, consumers added more meat and dairy products to their diets. This shift in eating patterns required more acres to be planted, more fertilizer to be applied and more animals to be fed—all requiring more potash. After years of trending upward, fertilizer use slowed in 2008. The worldwide economic downturn is

260-507: A joint-venture with Sinochem named Sinofert . In late 2013, it was 60%-owned by institutional shareholders. In 2007, the CEO, William Doyle was by far the highest earning CEO in Canada, earning $ 320 million. PotashCorp was established by the government of Saskatchewan in 1975. In 1989 it became a publicly traded company as the government of Saskatchewan sold off some of its shares, selling

312-479: A number of potassium compounds that have "potash" in their traditional names: Most of the world reserves of potassium (K) were deposited as sea water in ancient inland oceans . After the water evaporated, the potassium salts crystallized into beds of potash ore. These are the locations where potash is being mined today. The deposits are a naturally occurring mixture of potassium chloride (KCl) and sodium chloride (NaCl), more commonly known as table salt . Over time, as

364-492: A pot, the primary means of manufacturing potash before the Industrial Era . The word potassium is derived from potash . Potash is produced worldwide in amounts exceeding 71.9 million tonnes (~45.4 million tonnes K 2 O equivalent ) per year as of 2021, with Canada being the largest producer, mostly for use in fertilizer . Various kinds of fertilizer-potash constitute the single greatest industrial use of

416-482: A significant impact on high-quality wetlands and aquatic habitat . The permit presumes that the state will write new rules that accommodate the company's ambitions. A group of community members in Penobsquis , where PotashCorp has existing and planned potash mines, has launched an action against the mine for damages relating to lost wells, subsidence, noise, light and dust pollution as well as anxiety. This action

468-564: A study conducted between 1977 and 1987 of cardiovascular disease among potash workers, the overall mortality rates were low, but a noticeable difference in above-ground workers was documented. Potassium is the third major plant and crop nutrient after nitrogen and phosphorus . It has been used since antiquity as a soil fertilizer (about 90% of current use). Fertilizer use is the main driver behind potash consumption, especially for its use in fertilizing crops that contribute to high-protein diets. As of at least 2010, more than 95% of potash

520-533: Is caustic and hygroscopic . At the beginning of 2008, potash prices started a meteoric climb from less than US$ 200 a tonne to a high of US$ 875 in February 2009. These subsequently dropped dramatically to an April 2010 low of US$ 310 level, before recovering in 2011–12, and relapsing again in 2013. For reference, prices in November 2011 were about US$ 470 per tonne, but as of May 2013 were stable at US$ 393. After

572-597: Is also a major producer. The Permian Basin deposit includes the major mines outside of Carlsbad , New Mexico, to the world's purest potash deposit in Lea County, New Mexico (near the Carlsbad deposits), which is believed to be roughly 80% pure. ( Osceola County, Michigan , has deposits 90+% pure; the only mine there was converted to salt production, however.) Canada is the largest producer, followed by Russia and Belarus. The most significant reserve of Canada's potash

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624-592: Is being handled through the New Brunswick Mining Commissioner. In 2011, a planned sulfur melting plant facility in Morehead City , North Carolina was withdrawn after public opposition. Potash Potash ( / ˈ p ɒ t æ ʃ / POT -ash ) includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water- soluble form. The name derives from pot ash , plant ashes or wood ash soaked in water in

676-523: Is located in the Dallol area of the Afar Region . Potash was one of the most important industrial chemicals. It was refined from the ashes of broadleaved trees and produced primarily in the forested areas of Europe, Russia , and North America . Although methods for producing artificial alkalis were invented in the late 18th century, these did not become economical until the late 19th century and so

728-414: Is located in the province of Saskatchewan and is mined by The Mosaic Company , Nutrien and K+S . In China , most potash deposits are concentrated in the deserts and salt flats of the endorheic basins of its western provinces, particularly Qinghai . Geological expeditions discovered the reserves in the 1950s but commercial exploitation lagged until Deng Xiaoping 's Reform and Opening Up Policy in

780-693: Is mined for use in agricultural purposes. Elemental potassium does not occur in nature because it reacts violently with water. As part of various compounds, potassium makes up about 2.6% of the Earth's crust by mass and is the seventh most abundant element, similar in abundance to sodium at approximately 1.8% of the crust. Potash is important for agriculture because it improves water retention, yield, nutrient value, taste, color, texture and disease resistance of food crops. It has wide application to fruit and vegetables, rice, wheat and other grains, sugar, corn, soybeans, palm oil and cotton, all of which benefit from

832-703: Is on the Boards of Durectors of Emera, AngloGold Ashanti Limited and the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation During his 24 years at Inmet, Tilk, through asset optimization , organic growth and strategic acquisitions, grew Inmet into a $ 5 billion-plus enterprise, and led capital expenditure programs of approximately US$ 7 billion with new mine developments in Spain and Central America . Inmet's facilities were recognized as leaders in quality and cost. This biography about

884-601: Is particularly suitable for surface mining. It was explored in the 1960s but the works stopped due to flooding in 1967. Attempts to continue mining in the 1990s were halted by the Eritrean–Ethiopian War and have not resumed as of 2009. All commercial potash deposits come originally from evaporite deposits and are often buried deep below the earth's surface. Potash ores are typically rich in potassium chloride (KCl), sodium chloride (NaCl) and other salts and clays, and are typically obtained by conventional shaft mining with

936-505: Is skimmed for the amine + KCl, which is then dried and packaged for use as a K rich fertilizer—KCl dissolves readily in water and is available quickly for plant nutrition . Recovery of potassium fertilizer salts from sea water has been studied in India . During extraction of salt from seawater by evaporation, potassium salts get concentrated in bittern , an effluent from the salt industry. Potash deposits are distributed unevenly throughout

988-402: Is used for industrial water treatment and is the precursor of potassium carbonate, several forms of potassium phosphate, many other potassic chemicals, and soap manufacturing. Potassium carbonate is used to produce animal feed supplements, cement , fire extinguishers , food products, photographic chemicals , and textiles. It is also used in brewing beer , pharmaceutical preparations, and as

1040-560: The Belarusian Potash Company . The latter was a joint venture between Belaruskali and Uralkali , but on July 30, 2013, Uralkali announced that it had ended the venture. Potash is water soluble and transporting it requires special transportation infrastructure. Excessive respiratory disease due to environmental hazards, such as radon and asbestos , has been a concern for potash miners throughout history. Potash miners are liable to develop silicosis . Based on

1092-806: The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance countries. After the dissolution of the USSR , Russian and Belarusian potash producers entered into direct competition with producers elsewhere in the world for the first time. In the beginning of the 20th century, potash deposits were found in the Dallol Depression in the Musely and Crescent localities near the Ethiopean- Eritrean border. The estimated reserves in Musely and Crescent are 173 and 12 million tonnes respectively. The latter

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1144-533: The 1970s. In 1964 the Canadian company Kalium Chemicals established the first potash mine using the solution process. The discovery was made during oil reserve exploration. The mine was developed near Regina, Saskatchewan. The mine reached depths greater than 1500 meters. It is now the Mosaic Corporation's Belle Plaine unit. The USSR's potash production had largely been for domestic use and use in

1196-534: The 1980s. The 1989 opening of the Qinghai Potash Fertilizer Factory in the remote Qarhan Playa increased China's production of potassium chloride sixfold, from less than 40,000 t (39,000 long tons; 44,000 short tons) a year at Haixi and Tanggu to just under 240,000 t (240,000 long tons; 260,000 short tons) a year. In 2013, almost 70% of potash production was controlled by Canpotex , an exporting and marketing firm, and

1248-517: The United States, and also in Brazil and the Middle East. By March 2008, due to rising potash prices it had become one of the most valuable companies in Canada by market capitalization , valued at almost C$ 63 billion. In 2003 PotashCorp operated six of 11 mines in Canada. In August 2010, PotashCorp became the subject of a hostile takeover bid by BHP Billiton . The bid was ultimately rejected by

1300-534: The United States. In the early 1980s the company struggled and lost money for several years accumulating an $ 800 million debt. In 1989 the Conservative government decided to privatize it by selling the company to private investors. During the 1990s PotashCorp expanded by buying up a number of American potash companies including Potash Company of America , Florida Favorite Fertilizer , Texasgulf , and Arcadian Corporation . It went on to own assets across Canada,

1352-661: The company announced that it would lay off 1,045 employees. In April 2014, PotashCorp named Jochen Tilk as its new CEO, succeeding Bill Doyle . In January 2016 price depression in the potash market combined with underground structural issues caused the firm to close its Sussex NB Piccadilly mining operation. On September 12, 2016, PotashCorp announced that it had agreed to merge with the Calgary-based firm Agrium , pending government approval. The merged company, which would be known as Nutrien and be based in Saskatoon,

1404-462: The dependence on organic sources of potash remained. Potash became an important international trade commodity in Europe from at least the early 14th century. It is estimated that European imports of potash required 6 or more million cubic metres each year from the early 17th century. Between 1420 and 1620, the primary exporting cities for wood-derived potash were Gdańsk , Königsberg and Riga . In

1456-473: The element potassium in the world. Potassium was first derived in 1807 by electrolysis of caustic potash ( potassium hydroxide ). Potash refers to potassium compounds and potassium-bearing materials, most commonly potassium carbonate. The word "potash" originates from the Middle Dutch potaschen , denoting "pot ashes" in 1477. The old method of making potassium carbonate ( K 2 CO 3 )

1508-503: The evaporation method, hot water is injected into the potash, which is dissolved and then pumped to the surface where it is concentrated by solar induced evaporation. Amine reagents are then added to either the mined or evaporated solutions. The amine coats the KCl but not NaCl. Air bubbles cling to the amine + KCl and float it to the surface while the NaCl and clay sink to the bottom. The surface

1560-560: The extracted ore ground into a powder. Most potash mines today are deep shaft mines as much as 4,400 feet (1,400 m) underground. Others are mined as strip mines, having been laid down in horizontal layers as sedimentary rock . In above-ground processing plants, the KCl is separated from the mixture to produce a high-analysis potassium fertilizer. Other potassium salts can be separated by various procedures, resulting in potassium sulfate and potassium-magnesium sulfate. Other methods include dissolution mining and evaporation methods from brines. In

1612-539: The federal government under the Investment Canada Act , as it did not provide a net benefit to the country. BHP withdrew its bid soon thereafter. In October 2013, PotashCorp reported that it had sustained a 43% drop in third quarter profit year-over-year. The company cited Uralkali 's decision to break apart its joint venture with Belaruskali, and the impending threat of lower potash prices that would result, as having hampered its profits. In December 2013,

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1664-521: The government. Over the next several years PCS bought mines around Saskatchewan, and eventually came to control 40% of domestic production. Public ownership drew the ire of the United States government, which criticised the provincial government for buying Americans' assets and creating a monopoly. In the 1980s the United States Department of Commerce accused the corporation of dumping and imposed massive duties on all potash imports to

1716-514: The late 15th century, London was the lead importer due to its position as the centre of soft soap making while the Dutch dominated as suppliers and consumers in the 16th century. From the 1640s, geopolitical disruptions (i.e. Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) ) meant that the centres of export moved from the Baltic to Archangelsk , Russia. In 1700, Russian ash was dominant though Gdańsk remained notable for

1768-559: The merger between PotashCorp and Agrium was completed. As a result of completing the transaction, Agrium and PotashCorp were dissolved and the assets formed the new company Nutrien . A coalition of conservation organizations are challenging a permit issued by the North Carolina Division of Water Quality to PotashCorp's Aurora, North Carolina , phosphate mining operation, which allows the company to expand its mining operation. The mining expansion will allegedly not have

1820-424: The need to clear land for agriculture . From 1767, potash from wood ashes was exported from Canada. By 1811, 70% of the total 19.6 million lbs of potash imports to Britain came from Canada. Exports of potash and pearl ash reached 43,958 barrels in 1865. There were 519 asheries in operation in 1871. The wood-ash industry declined in the late 19th century when large-scale production of potash from mineral salts

1872-580: The nutrient's quality-enhancing properties. Demand for food and animal feed has been on the rise since 2000. The United States Department of Agriculture 's Economic Research Service (ERS) attributes the trend to average annual population increases of 75 million people around the world. Geographically, economic growth in Asia and Latin America greatly contributed to the increased use of potash-based fertilizer. Rising incomes in developing countries also were

1924-489: The primary reason for the declining fertilizer use, dropping prices, and mounting inventories. The world's largest consumers of potash are China, the United States, Brazil, and India. Brazil imports 90% of the potash it needs. Potash consumption for fertilizers is expected to increase to about 37.8 million tonnes by 2022. Potash imports and exports are often reported in K 2 O equivalent , although fertilizer never contains potassium oxide, per se, because potassium oxide

1976-740: The quality of its potash. On the Orkney islands, kelp ash provided potash and soda ash , production starting "possibly as early as 1719" and lasting for a century. The products were "eagerly sought after by the glass and soap industries of the time." By the 18th century, higher quality American potash was increasingly exported to Britain. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, potash production provided settlers in North America badly needed cash and credit as they cleared wooded land for crops. To make full use of their land, settlers needed to dispose of excess wood. The easiest way to accomplish this

2028-431: The remaining shares in 1990. The Saskatchewan potash industry began in the 1950s and 1960s. The government saw it as a promising new field and granted large subsidies to the new projects, mainly by American companies. However, this led to overproduction and when a global potash glut began in the late 1960s the industry almost collapsed. The Liberal government of the province introduced an emergency plan setting up quotas and

2080-501: The same rate as hiring a laborer to clear the same area. Potash making became a major industry in British North America. Great Britain was always the most important market. The American potash industry followed the woodsman's ax across the country. The first US patent of any kind was issued in 1790 to Samuel Hopkins for an improvement "in the making of Pot ash and Pearl ash by a new Apparatus and Process". Pearl ash

2132-439: The short-run and even in the long run. In addition to its use as a fertilizer, potassium chloride is important in many industrialized economies, where it is used in aluminium recycling , by the chloralkali industry to produce potassium hydroxide, in metal electroplating , oil-well drilling fluid , snow and ice melting, steel heat-treating, in medicine as a treatment for hypokalemia , and water softening . Potassium hydroxide

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2184-557: The surface of the earth changed, these deposits were covered by thousands of feet of earth. Potash (especially potassium carbonate) has been used in bleaching textiles, making glass , ceramic, and making soap , since the Bronze Age . Potash was principally obtained by leaching the ashes of land plants. Beginning in the 14th century potash was mined in Ethiopia . One of the world's largest deposits, 140 to 150 million tons,

2236-450: The surprise breakup of the world's largest potash cartel at the end of July 2013, potash prices were poised to drop some 20 percent. At the end of December 2015, potash traded for US$ 295 a tonne. In April 2016 its price was US$ 269. In May 2017, prices had stabilised at around US$ 216 a tonne down 18% from the previous year. By January 2018, prices have been recovering to around US$ 225 a tonne. World potash demand tends to be price inelastic in

2288-604: The world. As of 2015 , deposits are being mined in Canada, Russia, China, Belarus, Israel, Germany, Chile, the United States, Jordan, Spain, the United Kingdom, Uzbekistan and Brazil, with the most significant deposits present under the great depths of the Prairie Evaporite Formation in Saskatchewan , Canada. Canada and Russia are the countries where the bulk of potash is produced; Belarus

2340-511: Was a purer quality made by calcination of potash in a reverberatory furnace or kiln. Potash pits were once used in England to produce potash that was used in making soap for the preparation of wool for yarn production. After about 1820, New York replaced New England as the most important source; by 1840 the center was in Ohio. Potash production was always a by-product industry, following from

2392-468: Was by collecting or producing wood ash (the occupation of ash burners ), leaching the ashes, and then evaporating the resulting solution in large iron pots, which left a white residue denominated "pot ash". Approximately 10% by weight of common wood ash can be recovered as potash. Later, "potash" became widely applied to naturally occurring minerals that contained potassium salts and the commercial product derived from them. The following table lists

2444-481: Was discovered in Saskatchewan , Canada, during oil drilling. Active exploration began in 1951. In 1958, the Potash Company of America became the first potash producer in Canada with the commissioning of an underground potash mine at Patience Lake . As numerous potash producers in Canada developed, the Saskatchewan government became increasingly involved in the industry, leading to the creation of Canpotex in

2496-472: Was established in Germany . In the early 20th century, the potash industry was dominated by a cartel in which Germany had the dominant role. WWI saw a brief resurgence of American asheries, with their product typically consisting of 66% hydroxide, 17% carbonate, 16% sulfate and other impurities. Later in the century, the cartel ended as new potash producers emerged in the USSR and Canada. In 1943, potash

2548-481: Was resisted by the potash producers, and its constitutionality was challenged. Thus in 1975 the provincial government established the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan as a government crown corporation . In November 1975 the province announced its intention to take part of the potash industry into public ownership. The government offered to negotiate with the producers, and many of them agreed to sell to

2600-585: Was the Executive Chairman of Nutrien from 2014 to 2018. He was President and CEO of PotashCorp from July 1, 2014 until its merger with Agrium to form Nutrien. Previously he was CEO of Inmet Mining Corporation , a Canadian metals company with operations in Turkey , Finland , Spain , and development in Panama , between 2009 and 2013. He is also the former Chair of Petaquilla Copper Limited. He

2652-419: Was to burn any wood not needed for fuel or construction. Ashes from hardwood trees could then be used to make lye , which could either be used to make soap or boiled down to produce valuable potash. Hardwood could generate ashes at the rate of 60 to 100 bushels per acre (500 to 900 m /km ). In 1790, the sale of ashes could generate $ 3.25 to $ 6.25 per acre ($ 800 to $ 1,500/km ) in rural New York State – nearly

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2704-558: Was valued at US$ 36 billion and became the largest producer of potash and second-largest producer of nitrogen fertilizer worldwide. The deal was structured so that 52% of the merged company is held by PotashCorp shareholders, and 48% by Agrium shareholders. The year 2016 saw a serious downturn in PotashCorp's earnings and profits. The table at right briefly compares 2016 and 2015 performance. The company closed two of its less profitable potash mines in Canada in 2016. On January 1, 2018,

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