K+S Decides on Investment in a New Salt Brine Field in The Netherlands

Frisia Zout is the largest vacuum salt plant in the K+S Group, serving electrolysis plants of the European chemical industry and producing a comprehensive range of high purity salt specialties for a variety of industrial applications. All brine for the vacuum salt production stems from solution mining and comes from salt caverns at a depth of about 3000 meters – currently from an on-shore brine field.

Based on a new mining permit from the relevant mining authorities in the Netherlands, K+S is developing a new off-shore brine field deep below the Wadden Sea close to the plant. The new brine field will be located near the port entrance of Harlingen, the so-called Havenmond area, and will be developed by directional drillings from shore in 2019. It will be fully operational by the end of 2020 and allow for a production increase of about 25%, bringing the production to a level of about 1.2 million tons per year. Further increases are possible.

"With this investment we will secure the production of Frisia Zout for the upcoming decades", summarizes Mark Roberts, COO and Member of the K+S Board of Executive Directors. "Additionally, it will be the basis for a substantial production increase, contributing strongly to the growth of our industrial business. It also shows our commitment to satisfy the increasing demand of our existing as well as future customers and is fully in line with the strategic and financial targets outlined in the K+S Shaping 2030 Strategy. At the same time, our highly efficient operation at Harlingen is perfectly in line with our sustainability targets, running on sustainable energy in form of steam and electricity supplies from our partner Omrin, operating a neighboring waste-to-energy plant."

About K+S

K+S considers itself as a customer-focused, independent minerals company for the segments of Agriculture, Industry, Consumers, and Communities and wants to grow the EBITDA to € 3 billion in 2030. Our over 14,000 employees enable farmers to provide nutrition for the world, provide solutions that keep industries going, improve daily life for consumers and provide safety in the winter. We continually meet the growing demand for mineral products from production sites in Europe, North and South America as well as a worldwide sales network. We strive for sustainability because we are deeply committed to our responsibilities to people, environment, communities and economy of the regions in which we operate. Learn more about K+S at www.k-plus-s.com.