Potash Ridge, a Canadian-based exploration and development company, obtained a permit to start large mining operations at the Blawn Mountain only in July this year but the project located in Southern Utah has made a significant progress since then. In addition to the approval of the firm’s notice by the Utah Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining, Potash Ridge also obtained a groundwater discharge permission. Both permits were subject to 30-day comment periods, which have successfully passed without any objections.
Moreover, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Tetra Tech for a long-term strategic relationship with the aim to develop the Blawn Mountain. The only major permission that Potash Ridge is still missing is the air permit.
Under the memorandum with Tetra Tech, the company will be in charge of construction, procurement, and engineering management for the region. The MOU also considers the Tetra Tech being involved in build-own-operate (BOO) deals for a number of infrastructure arrangements, some of them possibly including water treatment and sulphuric acid plants. CEO of Potash Ridge, Guy Bentinck, said that the partnership with Tetra Tech combined his company’s world class sulphate of potash project with a leading provider of consulting, engineering, and construction management. “Tetra Tech’s willingness to participate in BOO arrangements for infrastructure assets represents our project’s first long-term strategic alliance and is a major positive step in our project financing strategy,” he added. When the project at the Blawn Mountain gets started, it will include drilling at Area 3 and Area 4, which is a major progress. So far, drilling has taken place only in Areas 1 and 2. The Canadian firm believes that the new focus will “further increase Blawn Mountain’s reserves based on verifying data from historical drill campaigns”.
