Italian-Thai to Buy Canadian Potash Miner for $72 Million

Italian-Thai to Buy Canadian Potash Miner for $72 Million

Italian-Thai to Buy Canadian Potash Miner for $72 Million



June 9 (Bloomberg) -- Italian-Thai Development Pcl, Thailand's largest construction company, said it will pay C$80.4 million ($72 million) for Asia Pacific Resources Ltd., a Canada- based potash miner.



Italian-Thai, through unit SRMT Holdings Ltd, will buy 86 percent of Asia Pacific shares, and 98 percent of its warrants, the Thai company said in a statement to the exchange today. Asia Pacific holds prospecting licenses for potash in Udon Thani province, about 700 kilometers northeast of the Thai capital.



``Potash is an essential agricultural nutrient which has high demand and no substitute, and this deposit is one of the few significant deposits in Asia,'' the statement said. ``The deposit is strategically located near several major potash importing nations and it is believed that this will give the project a significant cost advantage.''



Italian-Thai's President Premchai Karnasuta said May 10 the company planned to invest 20 billion baht to develop potash mining as it seeks to grow earnings away from construction, which is subject to cycles, tighter margins and increasing competition.



Italian-Thai also plans to triple its cement production capacity to 3 million metric tons a year from about 1 million currently, Premchai said during a plant visit outside Bangkok last month.

In one of my post about the bridge construction, I mentioned the potash mine , and I think Italian Thai will build the upgrade of the railway line Udon to Bkk.port. which will make the train journey much shorter

Kally

lee wrote:Italian-Thai to Buy Canadian Potash Miner for $72 Million
Asia Pacific holds prospecting licenses for potash in Udon Thani province, about 700 kilometers northeast of the Thai capital.
``The deposit is strategically located near several major potash importing nations and it is believed that this will give the project a significant cost advantage.''

Anyone have any ideas as to where this "deposit" is located? Udon is a big province.
I would hate to buy some property, only to find out later I'll be living next to a potash mine.
I wonder what what the environmental impact will be? How much of nature are they going to destroy this time?

It's all under ground and covers a big area south of Udon, it is expected that the mine will cause the ground to sink about a metre.

Being going on for about 10 years, might finally get fully operational

You can see the plan of where it is here, google it and there are plenty to read about it from pass issues

It will bring jobs to Udon, and now that it is in Thai hands , out goes the safety and invironmental concerns, and in comes the bribes

New dual rail to BKK is also due for construction to supply the mine

the highway needs to be moved as well as the rail line
http://www.scottmurray.com/asia_pacific ... ration.htm

This is the main site to find all the info and maps ETChttp://www.apq-potash.com/

Got this feeling that all the maps and details will not be on the web now that the Thais have a hold of it, there use to be some great maps of both the south and north mines

Kally

Here is a good site for the maps links still work

http://www.appc.co.th/project_geo.htm


Kally

Aren't they the company responsible for hundreds of abandonded BTS bridge supports all over Bangkok - after they suddenly left the project ????

http://www.2bangkok.com/2bangkok/Skytrain/taksin.shtml


That should keep ya reading about the mess the BTS is in , but the Thai construction firm pulled out over non payment

New contracts due for start by 2007


Kally

Five years down the pike, and Italian-Thai Development Plc wants to sell off 15% of its stake in the project (http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/fin ... sh-project)
There are rosy predictions that the mine will be under construction early next year and in operation in 2 years. Of course, by then Thailand will have 3G too!
My fortune cookie says the mine will eventually happen....but I didn't say 'in my lifetime'.