Announced that it had bought privately held York Potash Ltd for 25.1 million pounds ($39.82 million) to gain access to over 600 square kilometres of mineral rights, as demand for the key crop nutrient Potash heats up.
Investors will remember that late last year there was a fierce defence by the Canandian Potash company against BHP´s attempted take over of it.
It is not a cash take over of the private company Sirius (SXX.L) exchanging shares alloting 150 million shares to York shareholders, valuing the deal at a shade over 25.1 million pounds, based on its Friday close of 16.75 pence.
Sirius started life off as a Copper Mining company with 2 mines in Macedonia. When the shares were as low as 2p we had seriously considered increasing our stake by 200% but the trouble with penny stock is the wide spread and we just missed aquiring the additional shares because of this.
Being a long investor we will retain our stake.
The mineral rights are between the towns of Whitby and Scarborough in North Yorkshire, and relate to all evaporites including potash (sylvite), polyhalite, rock salt, and intermingled minerals beneath the agreement areas.
With the standard of living improving in delevoping countries the demand for foodstocks will rise and farmers will like for fertilizers to improve the yield of crops on their land and hence the mining industries interest in acquiring Potash Mining Company assets as it is quicker than exploration of virgin territory.
Potash output in 2005
Potassium is the seventh most abundant element in the Earth's crust, and is the third major plant and crop nutrient after nitrogen and phosphate. About 93% of world potash consumption is used in fertilizers, with small amounts used in manufacturing soaps, glass, ceramics, chemical dyes, drugs, synthetic rubber, de-icing agents, water softeners and explosives. Other main potash fertilizer products include potassium sulfate (K2SO4) and potassium nitrate (KNO3).
Potash has been used since antiquity in the manufacture of glass, soap, and soil fertilizer.
taste, colour, texture and disease resistance of food crops. It has wide application to fruit and vegetables, rice, wheat and other grains, sugar,corn, soybeans, palm oil and cotton, all of which benefit from the nutrient’s quality enhancing properties.
Demand for food and animal feed has been on the rise since 2000. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service (ERS) attributes the trend to average annual population increases of 75 million people around the world. Geographically, economic growth in Asia, India, and Latin America greatly contributed to the increased use of potash-based fertilizer. Rising incomes in developing countries also was a factor in the growing potash and fertilizer use. With more money in the household budget, consumers added more meat and dairy products to their diets. This shift in eating patterns required more acres to be planted, more fertilizer to be applied and more animals to be fed – all requiring more potash.
