Amec Foster Wheeler Plays Role in $11.2 Billion of Canadian Metals & Minerals Projects, Led by Potash

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Amec Foster Wheeler plc (NYSE:AMFW) (AFW) (London, England) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Muskowekwan Resources Limited, which is jointly owned by Muskowekwan First Nations and Encanto Potash Corporation (Vancouver, British Columbia), to serve as lead design engineer on the Muskowekwan Potash Project in Saskatchewan. It will be the Canadian province's first mining project on First Nations land. It also is just one of more than $11.2 billion in active Canadian projects in the Metals & Minerals Industry that include AFW and are being tracked by Industrial Info.

The $1.95 billion in-situ potash solution mine and mill in Lestock, Saskatchewan, is designed to produce 2.8 million tonnes per year of potash over a 60-year mine life. Muskowekwan Resources Limited and Encanto have a joint venture agreement to develop the Muskowekwan Potash Project. Muskowekwan First Nations will receive a revenue stream through its participation in the project, according to a press release from AFW. For more details, including contact information and current schedules, see Industrial Info's project report.

Encanto and AFW also are proposing a $186.8 million Natural Gas-Fired facility in Lestock that would provide energy and steam for the mining operations. Construction for the 100-megawatt (MW) cogeneration plant is expected to coincide with the construction of the mine. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

"The foundation of the memorandum of understanding is based on our strong relationship with the Muskowekwan First Nation community," said Duane Gingrich, the senior vice president of mining at AFW, in a press release. "We are truly honored to have signed this historic agreement that will help foster a culture of economic independence, ownership and entrepreneurship amongst First Nations and local communities."

Another potash project involving AFW is one of Canada's highest-valued projects under construction: K + S Aktiengesellschaft Group's (Kassel, Germany) $4 billion Legacy Potash Solution Mine in Bethune, Saskatchewan. The project involves building a fresh-water solution mining operation and processing plant, with an initial production of 1 million tonnes per year of potash, which would later ramp up to 2 million tonnes per year. Commissioning at the plant began in August, and construction is expected to wrap up later in the spring. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

AFW is providing services for a variety of projects in other segments of Canada's Metals & Minerals Industry, including two gold and silver mines under construction: New Gold Incorporated's (Vancouver) $877 million Rainy River Mine in Emo, Ontario, and Pretium Resources Incorporated's (Vancouver) $746.9 million Brucejack Mine in Stewart, British Columbia. The Rainy River project is a 19,500-ton-per-day, open-pit mine and a 21,000-ton-per-day gravity-leach mill that will produce 243,000 and 429,000 ounces per year of gold and silver, respectively, over a 14-year mine life; the Brucejack project is a 2,700-ton-per-day gravity-flotation processing plant that will produce 404,000 and 1.5 million ounces per year of gold and silver, respectively, over an 18-year mine life. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the Rainy River and Brucejack projects.

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