Potash Corp. cuts 140 jobs, slashes output
Potash Corp., the world’s biggest fertilizer company, has announced it will cut production and jobs at its Saskatchewan mines amid persistently low potash prices and a planned merger with the world’s second-largest fertilizer company.
The Saskatoon-based company will lay off 100 permanent staff and 40 temporary employees at its mine in Cory, Sask., starting in February and continuing through the third quarter of 2017.
The move “is in line with our strategy to focus production at our lowest cost facilities,” said Potash spokesman Randy Burton.
It comes as the potash producer’s low-cost mine in Rocanville, Sask., ramps up.
It will also curtail production at its Allan and Lanigan facilities in Saskatchewan “consistent with the company’s practice of matching supply with market demand.”
Potash prices have languished around US$200 per tonne for the past year — from their highs of US$900 around 2008 — amid excessive global supply, but have started to regain some ground.
Lanigan will shutter for six weeks starting in January, while Allan will close for 12 weeks beginning in February. There will be temporary layoffs at those sites, but the company said it hasn’t determined how many as it tries to reassign people.
At Cory, the company will now produce only white potash. It will retain about 350 workers to run the plant. The company said the change wouldn’t impact availability or quality of its products.
“This is a difficult day for our employees and their families, and we are committed to helping those affected through this transition,” Mark Fracchia, president of the company’s potash division, said in a statement.