Resource assement of Penobsquis potash mine commissioned
A resource assessment of the levels of potash remaining in a Canadian mine has been announced, following its closure last year.
The Penobsquis potash mine, owned by PotashCorp, was shut down in November last year and now the New Brunswick Department of Energy and Mines says it will commission a resource assessment to determine how much potash remains at the site. The report will also explore what potential there is for future mining of potash should the price of potash rise to a profitable level.
A third part consultant will be brought in to carry out the resource assessment.
"As responsible managers of our province's resources, we have an obligation to review and fully understand what, if any, potential resource remains in the Penobsquis potash deposit," said Energy and Mines Minister Donald Arseneault.
It is expected to take up to three months for the full assessment to be completed.
Director of PotashCorp’s communications, Randy Burton, believes the closure and subsequent assessment is the way forward.
"The mine's not economic now and hasn't been for some time, and it's an expensive proposition to continue pumping it out,"
"So this is obviously part of the process of closing the mine, and that's what this environmental impact assessment is all about, to determine the conditions under which it'll be discontinued and operations wrapped up."
Following the report findings, the mine would then be flooded.
"We believe that some of the remaining ore would be accessible from the Picadilly mine if and when it were economic to mine," said Burton.
"It's not economic now and we don't foresee a time when it would be." He added.
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