ASX Potash Companies
The primary nutrients for plants are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Intermediate nutrients are sulphur, magnesium and calcium. Trace elements are calcium, iron, boron, manganese, zinc, molybdenum and copper. All elements are necessary for plant health however the three primary elements are required in the greatest volume.
The main supply of potassium comes from potassium chloride (KCl), or muriate of potash which includes a little (<5%) sodium chloride. Potassium is also supplied as potassium sulphate (K2SO4) and potassium nitrate (KNO3). In 2020 potassium muriate sold for an average price of USD500 per ton of K2O equivalent, while the average for all forms of potash was USD830 per ton of K2O equivalent.
World production in 2020 was 43Mt, with Canada being the largest producer at 12Mt, followed by Belarus, Russia and China. World resources are estimated to be about 250 billion tonnes.
The main source of potash is underground salt deposits, mainly comprising potassium and sodium chlorides. These formed through the evaporation of oceans that were then buried by overlying sediment. The mines can be as much as 3,000m deep. Several ASX companies are planning to recover potash from salt lake brines, mostly in WA.
Underground Potash Mine in Morocco
Several of the companies in the table below have quite advanced projects, for example Salt Lake Potash expects to be in production at Lake Way in Q2 2021. Most companies have healthy market caps and the sector has raised a substantial amount of cash over the last 12 months.
| Company | ASX Code | Share Price (c) | Shares on Issue (M) | Market Cap (M) | Project |
| Agrimin | AMN | 54 | 211 | 114 | Mackay, WA |
| Australian Potash | APC | 16.5 | 553 | 91 | 3 projects, WA |
| Danakali | DNK | 51 | 320 | 163 | Colluli, Eritrea |
| Davenport Res. | DAV | 9.5 | 423 | 40 | S Hartz, Germany |
| Highfield Resources | HFR | 69.5 | 330 | 229 | 3 projects, Spain |
| Kalium Lakes | KLL | 20.5 | 839 | 172 | Beyondie, WA |
| Kore Potash PLC | KP2 | 3 | 282 | 7.8 +£25 | 3 projects, R of Congo |
| Reward Minerals | RWD | 14 | 194 | 27 | Lake Disappoint, WA |
| Salt Lake Potash | SO4 | 49.5 | 737 | 365 | Lake Way, WA |
Worth keeping an eye on this sector as potash demand is predicted to be strong through 2021 after weakness during the Covid panic.