Name of the Project
Khemisset potash project.

Location
The project is located in northern Morocco.

Project Owner/s
Emmerson PLC.

Project Description
A feasibility study has confirmed the project as a world-class, low capital cost, high-margin potash mine.

The feasibility study is based on 43% of the Joint Ore Reserves Committee- (Jorc-) compliant mineral resource estimate of 537-million tonnes at an average grade of 9.24% potassium oxide, delivering an initial mine life of 19 years.

The feasibility study is estimated to produce about six-million tonnes a year of run-of-mine ore to produce muriate of potash (MoP) at steady-state production of about 735 000 t/y and de-icing salt at one-million tonnes a year. Peak production is estimated at 810 000 t/y of K60 MoP and one-million tonnes a year of de-icing salt.

The mine is proposed to be accessed through twin declines from the surface, which will allow for ore to be extracted using a conventional room-and-pillar mining methodology using continuous miners. Ore will be processed using hot leaching and cold crystallisation to produce the generic K60 MoP product, which is standard in the industry. The feasibility study assumes all MoP and salt product is exported through the Port of Casablanca using trucks from the mine site, to be sold in Emmerson’s target markets in the Atlantic corridor. Significant potential remains to increase the mine life by including additional resources, notably in the south-west of the pro­ject area, and through further exploration work.

Potential Job Creation
The project is expected to create 2 800 jobs, including 1 500 direct jobs, during the construction phase; and 1 212 jobs, including 760 direct jobs, during the production phase.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an after-tax net present value, at an 8% nominal discount rate, of $1.4-billion and an internal rate of return of 38.5%, with a 2.6-year payback.

Capital Expenditure
The capital cost of the project, including a $45.5-million contingency, is estimated at $387-million. About $24-million, including contingency, has been allocated to a salt plant designed to produce de-icing specification salt.

Planned Start/End Date
Not stated.

Latest Developments
The Moroccan Ministry of Energy, Mines and Environment has granted Emmerson a mining licence for its Khemisset potash project.

The licence provides the company with the exclusive right to develop and mine the potash deposit, within the perimeter of the licence, in the Khemisset basin, ahead of the anticipated initiation of construction by the end of 2021.
 
The grant of the mining licence follows a successful application process, which included the submission of a proven Jorc-compliant mineral resource estimate and the confirmed technical and economic viability of the project, which was satisfied by the feasibility study.

The mining licence encompasses the full resource base, allowing for the simple expansion of the operations in the future without the requirement to re-permit.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Golder Associates (feasibility study); including Moroccan Salts (consultant and resource geologists); Global Potash Solutions and Barr Associates (processing design) and DeltaBEC (project infrastructure).

Contact Details for Project Information
Emmerson PLC, tel +44 207 236 1177.