Arizona potash positioned to help meet U.S. needs

Worldwide demand for potash has increased in recent years, as developing countries vie to secure more potash fertilizer to support their increasing food supply needs.

U.S. mines currently produce about 1.5 million tons of potash annually, but as U.S. demand for potash fertilizer alone hovers around nine million tons annually, the nation’s agricultural sector must rely on mineral imports to mitigate the difference.

But potash projects in Arizona could meet more U.S. needs with domestically mined potash; the USGS estimates that the state’s Holbrook Basin contains between 0.7 billion to 2.5 billion metric tons of potash, and companies exploring the region estimate that they could easily double U.S. potash production.