Potash company sets sights on Churchill

WINNIPEG — Potash mined in western Manitoba is one step closer to being shipped around the world through the Port of Churchill.

The Russell-based Potash and Agri Development Corporation of Manitoba has signed a letter of intent with Arctic Gateway Group to support work on several shared priorities, including enhancing rail and port capacity for potash shipments.

Daymon Guillas, PADCOM’s president, said the corporation hopes to send a test train load to the port in the spring.

“We all want to succeed and Manitoba is fully in the potash business,” Guillas said Wednesday.

“This is a story about Manitoba potash by Manitoba people through a Manitoba port. It is a good Manitoba story. And this should also help our company grow faster.”

Guillas said the mine, located just west of Russell in Harrowby, near the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border, started production of potash in December and its licence with the province allows it to produce 250,000 tonnes per year. Potash is used to make fertilizer.

He said it would be more profitable for the company to go through Churchill instead of using rail to Eastern or Western Canada, not just because of the reduced distance, but the number of freight cars needed.

“We would have to own 400 cars to go east or west, but we are a small company and can’t afford that,” Guillas said. “But we can afford the 50 to 100 we would need to go to Churchill.

“And it would take three weeks to go east or west. We can go to Churchill and back in six days.”

Currently, the company’s customers are in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the United States, but being able to ship through Churchill would open up markets in Europe, Africa and South America.

Chris Avery, president and CEO of AGG, said the company is pleased to partner with the company running the province’s potash mine.

“Our mission is to strengthen the Port of Churchill (and) the Hudson Bay Railway as true national assets, helping Canada diversify trade and enable industries to reach new markets,” Avery said.

“This work will not only boost Manitoba’s competitiveness in the global potash market, but also drive meaningful employment and economic opportunities for Indigenous and northern communities through increased rail and port activity, and enable AGG to further diversify the mix of commodities we export to global markets.”

Avery said AGG completed a new storage facility earlier this year, tripling the amount of storage at the port.

“These facilities are designed for critical minerals and they’re perfectly suited for PADCOM’s potash,” he said.

“We expect to start moving PADCOM’s potash to Churchill next year, with exports slated to begin later in the year. And then, thanks to the investment in the rail and port, we’re in a position to handle these shipments efficiently.”

Because of climate change, Avery said he expects the port to be open for shipping six months of the year and investments in the railway have already doubled freight activity on the line and cut travel time by three hours.

“We’re not only opening new export pathways for Manitoba potash, we’re also reinforcing Churchill’s emerging role as Canada’s next major international port,” he said.

» Winnipeg Free Press