COLLIN GALLANT
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There's potash northeast of Medicine Hat, says the man spearheading mineral exploration in the region, but the current economic reality may leave it undeveloped based on initial test results.
Last November, Grizzly Discoveries Inc. drilled a test hole near Burstall, Sask., but on the Alberta side of the provincial boundary. Two core samples taken from different depths about 1,650 metres below the surface showed "visible potash minerals" according to a press release on Tuesday.
"We did hit some high-grade potash there, which is interesting, but our overall average isn't economic yet," said Brian Testo, the president of Grizzly.
The company purchased tracts of land along the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary over the past few years as Testo hypothesized that potash would be found and could be developed in Alberta, which he says has great business advantages compared to mining in Saskatchewan.
Initial tests have proven the presence of the sought-after fertilizer ingredient, and the company plans to examine the results more closely before proceeding.
"We have more than a million acres staked up in three blocks — near Lloydminster, Provost and Medicine Hat — and our original plan was to drill a hole at each one to find the best results."
The next step, according to Testo, is to look for more capital — either through a partnership with another company or a stock offering — to develop a bigger drilling program.
The company will continue with the initial drilling program, which includes another test hole northeast of Medicine Hat.
"We got a high grade at Medicine Hat but the thickness (of the deposit) isn't thick enough," said Testo. "We need an average of about 15 per cent K2O (the potash bearing mineral sylvite) over three to five metres."
The core samples, which were examined by Saskatchewan Research Council's geoanalytical labs in Saskatoon, show K20 percentages in that specific location between about two and 13 per cent at different depths.
The idea that potash exists in eastern Alberta is not new.
Geologists have discussed the possibility for ages but little formalized work has been done.
The Prairie Evaporite Formation — also known as the commercial potash mining belt — is a crescent-shaped geological formation of potash-bearing rock stretching in a band across Saskatchewan from North Dakota to a region along the Alberta boundary.
The long-held belief is that the formation only lays in Alberta in two outcroppings — one near Provost and the other in a slim line from Schular to Empress.
Testo believes that high-grade potash extends into Alberta, and has put up number of historic oil well logs and older geological surveys to back the claim.
Late last week, Pacific Potash Corporation, which has a partial stake in Grizzly properties near Provost, announced a potash strike on nearby land that it owns outright.
Another possible wrench in the economics comes from both the positioning of the discovery and the current moratorium on water leases in the region.
Potash at such depth needs to be mined using a salt water brine injection. The dissolved deposits are pumped out and separated in evaporation pools — a process that is less costly but requires more water.
"I do believe that Alberta has a huge potential for potash, and that Medicine Hat would be perfect for solution mining," said Testo.
"If we can hit a higher grade over a significant distance, then we'd be in the game. (The location) is perfect . . . there's a river right there to draw water from, there's infrastructure in place, there's the Alberta advantage, and it's closer to the market than Saskatchewan."
"Right now we're still looking at the potential."