January 18, 2012 — Farhad Abasov, President and CEO of Allana Potash Corp. (TSX: AAA | ALLRF: OTCQX) in an interview with Tracy Weslosky, Publisher of ProEdgeWire said: “We have finished our exploration last year and we’ve been in the development stage for the last 12-18 months….we’re entering what we call our pre-construction phase.”
Farhad also noted that Allana has secured the necessary water supply and much of the transportation infrastructure in place, crucial factors for the project, which should ensure an initial production of about 1 million tons starting at the end of 2014 or early 2015. Allana has also resorted to project financing mechanisms and Farhad said that “probably 60-65% of $800 million CAPEX requirements can come from project finance or debt financing and the rest we’ll raise from our equity financiers”.
Disclaimer: Allana Potash Corp. is a member of ProEdgeWire.
Hi Tracy, Next time he comes around, ask him how threatened he feeling about the cheaper potash mining alternative in Eritrea. There is an Ausie company that is targetting for open pit mining from the Eritrean side with only 100km away from the seaport. This is compared to Allana’s 600km commute to port and a solution mining process (versus open pit).
Certainly the Eritrean project of South Boulder Mines has some interesting potential. However, the government is now demanding a 50% free carry(up from 10%) with no cash/equity contribution so the company is likely re-evaluationg its options. As well, a coup attempt just last week in that country has left many investors wary of Eritrea as a safe mining jurisdiction now……Ethiopia, in contrast, has a stable and growing economy(+9%/yr over the past 7 years), a growing middle class and is a mining friendly and safe country to operate in ….investors are noticing the difference and are looking and investing in many new opportunities in Ethiopia as have many western and eastern governments that have been investing heavily there for years……