PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Kola potash project, in the Republic of the Congo (also known as Congo-Brazzaville), is expected to cost $2.1-billion to develop, triple-listed Kore Potash said on Tuesday.
The ASX-, JSE- and Aim-listed company revealed that Kola would have a nameplate capacity of 2.2-million tonnes a year of muriate of potash (MoP), over a 33-year mine life, delivering average annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of about $585-million and average yearly free cash flow of some $500-million.
A definitive feasibility study (DFS) into the project estimated a post-tax net present value of $1.45-billion and an ungeared internal rate of return of 17%.
Mine gate operating costs are expected to average $61.71/t, putting the project in the lowest cost quartile globally, while average costs of MoP delivered to Brazil would be around $102.47/t.
“Kore’s review of the DFS confirms the high quality of this potash asset and its importance globally. Kola is designed to deliver potash to markets in Latin America and Africa at a significantly lower cost than other potash producers over a long timeframe,” said Kore CEO Brad Sampson.
“It stands out globally as a project that needs to be brought into operation to meet the growing global demand for MoP. In the near future, we expect to amend the environmental and social impact assessment to be approved as the last step to full permitting of the project.”
The review of the DFS has also identified opportunities to improve and optimise the project, including opportunities to reduce the technical capital costs as well as potential to improve recovery rates, reduce the construction schedule by some six months, and extend the life or scale of the project by incorporating the Sylvinite mineral resource at the nearby Dougou extension deposit.