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-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
Emmerson’s 2020 Sustainability Summary, published on January 28, provides a forward-looking view of the development and construction of its Khemisset potash project.

Emmerson  CEO Graham Clarke has said that it will contribute to the overarching agenda of enriching agricultural soils to provide affordable food for the world’s growing population, and will have a positive impact on the local area.

The company has been analysing the potential impacts on people, local communities and the environment in the different project development workstreams.

Emmerson states that the Khemisset potash mine is a project of national significance and is expected to deliver significant direct and indirect benefits to local, regional and national stakeholders.

The company commissioned a professor of economics to undertake a socioeconomic-impact study, which has confirmed that the project will potentially have a substantial positive impact on the local area.

The project is expected to help in meeting the challenge of feeding the ever-increasing population from shrinking arable lands and keeping the roads safe by providing low-cost de-icing salt.

The project is expected to increase gross domestic product per capita by 40% at a local level and 0.42% at the national level.

The additional tax contributions resulting from the project represent about 176% of the tax revenues generated locally and almost 1% at the national level.

Export earnings from the project will contribute an additional 8% to Morocco's mineral export earnings and will have a significant positive effect on the country's balance of payments, Emmerson has said.

Through these impacts, and with effective policies in place, the study concluded that the project has the potential to directly impact on eight of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in Morocco.

The company has also completed a carbon footprint study to compare the expected emissions of the Khemisset project relative to its peers and to identify opportunities for improvement. The results of the study show the project has a relatively low carbon footprint.

Key factors identified for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions from the project are maximising the use of electric machinery rather than fuel-driven machinery, and the sourcing of renewable electricity.

The company has entered into a memorandum of understanding with an international renewables developer and discussions continue to finalise a supply contract this year. 

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.