RUSSELL – Manitoba's first potash mine is set to begin production this summer at the Russell McAuley Deposit.
"It's a private entity called Padcom (Potash and Agri Development Corporation of Manitoba) who has worked for...quite a few years on developing a potash mine in Manitoba," said Cheryl Kingdon-Chartier, Mayor of Russell, Manitoba, adding, "that has now come to fruition – they're hoping to start production, I believe, this summer."
"It's a surface solution mine which is quite a different concept than the rest of the potash mines that we're familiar with around here – leaving a smaller carbon footprint and being less expensive, I believe," said Kingdon-Chartier.
"Using a sustainable process, the production capacity of the potash mine is estimated to be 250,000 tonnes per year," read an article from GeoVerra's website, the company Padcom worked with to "provide surveying support and expertise in navigating the regulatory environment."
Kingdon-Chartier said she thinks the mine will have a positive impact on the surrounding area.
"Any economic development is a good impact on a rural area and the size of this – I feel – will have a positive impact on our municipality and municipalities around us as well," said Kingdon-Chariter, noting, "Manitoba, historically, has never had a potash mine, so that alone is quite important in the province's development and locally even more so, a project of that size."
