Thousands could lose savings in mine fiasco

THOUSANDS of small investors who backed plans to build the world’s largest fertiliser mine could lose their life savings after the future of the project was thrown into doubt.

Around 85,000 people, including local families wanting to protect jobs, put money into the scheme to dig out potash from under the North York Moors.

But yesterday the mine’s owner Sirius Minerals revealed it is struggling to raise the £400million needed for the next phase of the development.

The Government also appeared to rule out a rescue – causing shares in the company to slump by 79 per cent to just 2.1p each early yesterday before recovering slightly to close 55 per cent down at 4.6p.

The rout was a bitter blow for savers who have backed the scheme since it became a public company in 2005.

Sirius shares peaked at nearly 44p each in 2016, so an investor with £10,000 of shares then would have seen their value slump to as little as £477 yesterday. One small investor speaking on the shareholders’ forum London South East said he has

‘Screwed up my family’s future’

‘screwed up’ his family’s future by investing in the firm.

The man, who identified himself as Jonathan, said he had invested in the company from the beginning and supported it ‘through planning and every bump along the way’.

The promise of skilled jobs helped Sirius win support from local residents when it was trying to drum up support for the mine in a region with one of the highest unemployment rates in the country.

Yesterday’s announcement threatens up to 1,200 jobs constructing the mine and a 23-mile tunnel to take the potash to Teesside for export. The future of 1,000 permanent jobs the mine was expected to create when it opened in 2021 is also in doubt.

Sirius’s founder Chris Fraser blamed Brexit uncertainty as one of the reasons fresh investors were being put off, adding: ‘Anything to do with the UK and major capital projects is a big challenge for any financing at the moment.’

The company will now undergo a sixmonth review into its options.

City – Page 72