Reward lobs $20m bid for Beyondie potash project

Potash explorer Reward Minerals has struck an agreement to potentially pluck Kalium Lake’s Beyondie project out of receivership under a $20 million proposal.

Reward told the market it entered into an exclusivity deed with Kalium's receivers to negotiate the terms of a sale agreement for the potash player's flagship Beyondie project south east of Newman.

It comes after unsuccessful buyer and potash aspirant Agrimin failed in its bid to buy the potash project from receivers, with its share sale agreement being terminated in October.

The Perth-based explorer would pay an upfront sum of $14.75 million cash, plus a final payment of $5 million by June 2025 and an exclusivity payment of $250,000.

The funds would be generated through an equity raising for a minimum of $16 million through an entitlement issue, according to Reward.

Reward's flagship project is its Kumpupintil Lake Potash development, about 300 kilometres east of Newman in the Little Sandy Desert- which is also home to the Beyondie project. 

It also owns a Carnarvon potash development. 

Kalium’s project Beyondie had been producing sulphate of potash since September 2021 but had struggled due to technical and supply-related issues, straining the company’s finances.

Despite raising additional capital and exploring its options via a strategic process the company was unable to stay afloat, later appointing receivers in August.

In an ASX statement, Reward said its team had been investigating the Beyondie project for some time and believed the current flowsheet and operations could be simplified to make production of sulphate of potash profitable at the site.

Reward executive director Michael Ruane said it was rare that the opportunity exists to acquire an asset such as the Beyondie SOP project.

“The project is well advanced in a technical sense and is a perfect fit with the Reward team skill set," he said.

“A further bonus of the acquisition is that with relatively minor modifications, the Beyondie operation will serve as a low cost R&D facility required to confirm the operational parameters associated with the new Reward process.

“Laboratory testwork already undertaken suggests that the Beyondie feed brine responds well to the Reward Process.”