Australian Potash has secured further funding required for the development of its Lake Wells project in WA while asserting the quality of its K-Brite fertiliser product.
Australian Potash has secured further funding required for the development of its Lake Wells project in Western Australia while asserting the quality of its K-Brite fertiliser product.
The company on Monday announced it had secured a $45 million loan from Export Finance Australia to partially fund the Lake Wells project, located in the Goldfields-Esperance region.
Australian Potash said the 10-year debt facility had been verified as a 'green loan', in line with principles adopted by the Loan Market Association and Asia Pacific Loan Market Association.
It follows a $140 million loan approved by government-owned Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility in early March.
Lake Wells is one of three potash projects to have received NAIF support.
The $208 million project is the lowest-cost sulphate of potash (SOP) project under development in WA, expected to produce 170,000 tonnes of SOP per annum (revised from 150,000tpa) throughout a 30-year operating life.
Production and sales are anticipated to start in mid-2023.
Managing director Matt Shackleton said Australian Potash was committed to developing an environmentally sustainable project.
“Green loan verification provides assurance to our lenders and broader stakeholder group that we will honour this commitment, adopting a governance and reporting framework in line with green loan principles,” he said on Monday.
“It is very satisfying to have our efforts in this regard recognised, and to be able to pass on this third-party assurance to our lenders, as we move rapidly towards development of the LSOP.”
Today, Mr Shackleton said Australian Potash’s K-Brite fertiliser product, which is certified for organic agricultural use in multiple countries where it will be distributed, was regarded as a “truly green fertiliser” that sat at the premium end of the global SOP market.
Australian Potash has five binding take-or-pay offtake arrangements in place for its K-Brite product, including with Hamburg-based HELM and Japan’s Mitsui & Co.
Other major SOP developments in WA include Salt Lake Potash’s $264 million Lake Way project in the Mid West, which will begin production this quarter, and Kalium Lakes’ $248 million Beyondie project in the Pilbara, where first production is expected during the September quarter.
Shares in Australian Potash were down 2.3 per cent at 1:28pm AEST to trade at 17 cents.