Grand opening of Legacy

During the ceremony, the mine will be handed over to the operations team. The five-year construction phase has been successfully completed and the first tonne of marketable potash is to be produced in June.

“We’re delighted to welcome a very good corporate citizen, K+S, back to Saskatchewan as it begins operations at a mine that will create more than 400 permanent jobs and generate taxes and royalties for years to come,” Premier Brad Wall said. “The Legacy project strengthens Saskatchewan’s position as the world’s leading potash producer and is another indicator the province’s diversified and resilient economy is weathering economic uncertainty. We’re thankful for an investment that creates jobs and opportunity in Saskatchewan.”

The new potash mine, which ran under the project name Legacy, has also received its new name "Bethune".

"With our new location, we are making a huge step forward in the internationalisation of our potash business," said Norbert Steiner, Chairman of the Board of Management of K+S Aktiengesellschaft. "Bethune enables us to participate in future market growth, reduce our average production costs and strengthen our international competitiveness, which will benefit the entire K+S Group."

In the course of the year, the first potash transport by freight train will take place from the site in southern Saskatchewan to the new K+S port facility in Vancouver, from where the potash will be shipped to customers mainly in South America and Asia. K+S also expects to achieve the desired production capacity of 2 million t by the end of 2017.

"Bethune is the most modern potash facility in the world and will sustainably strengthen the raw material and production base of the K+S Group, thereby opening up a long-term perspective over the time span of our German potash deposits," said Dr. Ralf Bethke, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of K+S Aktiengesellschaft.

With an investment volume of around €3.1 billion, the Bethune mine is the largest single project in the company history of K+S.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldfertilizer.com/potash/03052017/grand-opening-of-legacy/