Argentina announces development of huge potassium deposits with Brazil
President Cristina Fernández announced on Thursday the development of a mining project between Neuquén, Mendoza and Río Negro provinces which will led by Brazilian company Vale, and is expected to become the largest potassium mining site in the world.
“I like that fact that this project will be developed with Brazil,” added Cristina Fernández arguing that “the agreement will thus restore our trade balance with Brazil.”
The project involves extracting and processing 4.3 million tons of potassium annually, with an investment of 5.9 billion dollars, turning Argentina into the world’s third exporter and fifth producer.
Vale Doce together with Petrobras are Brazil’s leading international corporations and is ranked with Anglo-Australian with Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton as the three major mining enterprises in the world.
The president said the magnitude of the project is a big confidence plus for Argentina and will a great boost for Argentina and Brazilian agriculture since potassium is one of three basic nutrients for agriculture (together with nitrogen and phosphorus).
The project is in Malargue some 200 kilometres from the city of Mendoza and includes production, processing and distribution of potassium chloride “and will have us among the five leading countries in the world”.
“We do not have phosphorus and are forced to import it from Morocco, as does Brazil, but I’m sure that if we keep looking, with such a huge territory, we are bound to find phosphorus”, said Cristina Fernandez.
Argentine government sources added that the deposits are expected to keep production for 40 years creating 16.750 jobs. The project will demand 870 kilometres of railway lines, (550 km to be repaired and 370 km new). By 2014 the railway should be transporting 2.4 million tons of potassium chloride and will have its own loading harbour at Ingeniero White, next to Bahía Blanca in Buenos Aires province.
The Head of State also called for South American countries to make joint efforts to become a breakout region in the century we are living in.
“I want to highlight the strategic need we have in South America to join efforts to become a major leading region in the 21st century” she emphasized.
Cabinet chief Juan Manuel Abal Medina and Ministers Julio De Vido (Planning), Florencio Randazzo (Interior) and Débora Giorgi (Industry) and Vice-president Amado Boudou attended the ceremony
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22 comments Feed
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Nope the big news are 5.9 billion dollars investment + turning Argentina into the world’s third exporter + 16.750 jobs creation + 870 kilometres of railway lines + all new business created to supply the mines.
Do you have any big news from UK that is not linked with QE, cutting services, austerity, defence cuts, debt, bailouts for banks and huge unemployment?
I guess not...
LOL
Its funny that when the company involved is South American there are no cries of “pirates robbing our resources” but if the company is from USA, UK, Canada, etc. it is daylight robbery.
As far as I know, Barrik Gold or any other mining company BUYS the resource from that country at the price fixed by the host country, so where is the “pirate robbery”?
Now in this case, there are several contamination issues still to be ironed out, one of the major ones being security on the future railway line which still has not been addressed.
Only the annocunment of 9.5 BN pound investment in high speed rail network. DOH!
over 7 billion investment in the railways,
thats good news, not for the passengers, but good news all the same .
Wow, and we still have the Vaca Muerta oil + uranium at San Rafael... Plus the wine industry, tourism industry, the ski industry, the manufacturing industry on high-end energy (hydro and wind) parts, etc, etc.
But I agree Mendoza is a thriving example of an Argentine city. Very beautiful althought the wines form my current home of San Juan is far better lol.
Really? google “Mendoza province did not default” and you will see a PDF, look at the bottom of page 12 and the bottom paragraph of page 13.
As it is well known, Mendoza province and the City of Buenos Aires were the only ones not to default in 2001, they kept paying their debts.
However bad governing prevents it from doing so.
All other countries are run by little girls.
Argentina number one exporter of potassium.
Other countries have inferior potassium.
www.facebook.com/Britain1592
potassium.
LOL! That's exactly what I thought when I read the article.
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