Nutrien closes 3 Sask. potash mines for up to 8 weeks

As many as 700 potash workers are set to be laid off for the final fiscal quarter of 2019, after Nutrien announced it’s going to close three of its mines in Saskatchewan.

Those sites are located at Allan, Lanigan and Vanscoy.

Nutrien, which is the product of a merger between Agrium and Potash Corp., blamed “a short-term slowdown in global potash markets” for the temporary closures, in a media release.

The company called the closures “inventory shutdowns” that could last up to eight weeks.

The closures and potential layoffs will start in November.

“If all three potash facilities were to remain idled for the full eight weeks, potash production could be reduced by approximately 700,000 tonnes,” the company said.

Nutrien said it’s optimistic that potash demand will be sustainable in 2020.

In July, it lowered its estimate for 2019 adjusted earnings to reflect the impact of wet weather on U.S. planting and other factors that would reduce demand for potash in North America, China and India.

Last month, Mosaic’s Colonsay mine was shut down for similar reasons, impacting almost 400 jobs.

— With files from the Canadian Press