Saskatchewan Potash Mines: All 10 Compared

Saskatchewan has ten producing potash mines, according to the Saskatchewan Mining Association. Natural Resources Canada puts all ten of Canada’s active potash mines in the province and says they made an estimated 25 million tonnes of potash in 2024 (NRCan potash facts). Potash here means potassium chloride (KCl), also sold as muriate of potash or MOP, which is mostly used as fertilizer. This page puts the ten mines side by side, then covers the next mine to open, what the province earns, and the water and land issues that come with the work.

Saskatchewan potash mines compared: all 10 at a glance

The table lists every producing mine by operator. Two capacity figures are shown because the companies report them differently. Peak or nameplate capacity is the design rate: Nutrien calls it nameplate, Mosaic calls it proven peaking capacity. Operational capacity is the rate the company expects in normal running, after maintenance stops. Output is finished potash in millions of tonnes (Mt) for 2025 unless stated.

Chart

Operational capacity against 2025 output, eight mines

Million tonnes of finished potash per year; Bethune and Patience Lake not shown (no comparable figures)

Sources: Nutrien annual information form for 2025 (Allan, Cory, Lanigan, Rocanville, Vanscoy); Mosaic Form 10-K for 2025 (Esterhazy, Belle Plaine, Colonsay); K+S company presentation, September 2025 (Bethune). Nutrien’s filing gives no capacity or output figure for Patience Lake, and Nutrien figures are rounded here to one decimal place.

Three things stand out. First, the two biggest mines make about the same amount: Esterhazy at 4.7 Mt and Rocanville at 4.6 Mt in 2025. Second, most mines ran below their operational capacity, with Esterhazy the widest gap in tonnes (4.7 Mt against 6.3 Mt) and Colonsay the widest in share (0.8 Mt against 1.5 Mt). Third, Lanigan made more than its stated operational capability (3.4 Mt against 3.2 Mt), a reminder that these capacity numbers are management estimates, not hard limits.

How we counted and what the numbers mean

We counted a mine when a company filing or the provincial mining association lists it as a producing potash operation. That gives ten. NRCan’s potash page names four producing companies and includes Compass Minerals, but the Compass business in the province was the Wynyard plant, which made sulphate of potash (SOP, a different fertilizer salt), not muriate of potash from a mine. Compass reported the sale of that business on 1 March 2026 (Compass Minerals results filing), so it is not counted here.

Two units appear in this guide. Mine output and capacity are given as tonnes of finished product (near-pure KCl). Ore grade is given as percent potassium oxide (K2O) equivalent, the standard way to compare potash ores. Nutrien’s filing gives the conversion: multiply K2O tonnes by 1.58 to get KCl tonnes. Finished potash grades about 61% K2O, while the ore in the ground runs at about 19 to 27% K2O, which is why a mine hoists about three tonnes of ore for every tonne of product (Nutrien reports ratios of 2.8 to 3.4).

Nutrien: six mines from Rocanville to Patience Lake

Nutrien is the largest operator. Its filing says it holds exclusive potash rights on about 394,000 hectares of Crown land under 21-year leases, with six mines: Allan, Cory, Lanigan, Patience Lake, Rocanville and Vanscoy (Nutrien annual information form, 2025). The company estimates its potash nameplate capacity at about 20% of the world total and 54% of North America’s. It sold 14.25 million tonnes of potash in 2025 and guides to 14.1 to 14.8 million tonnes for 2026 (Nutrien results, 18 February 2026). It mined 49% of its potash ore tonnes with automation in 2025.

Five of the six mines have technical reports in the filing, which is where the mine-by-mine data below comes from. Patience Lake began as a conventional underground mine and has used solution mining since 1989.

Source: Nutrien annual information form for 2025. Reserves are at 31 December 2025. Mine life divides the reserve by the average ore tonnes hoisted over 2023 to 2025, so it is a calculation at today’s mining rate, not a closure date. Vanscoy shows 116 years mainly because it hoists little ore.

Rocanville stands out for grade: its ore is the leanest of the five at 21.2% K2O, yet it is Nutrien’s biggest producer, because it hoists far more ore than the others (an average of about 16.5 million tonnes a year over 2023 to 2025). The filing also reports mill recovery, the share of potash in the feed that ends up as product. Over the past decade it averaged 86.8% at Allan, 78.7% at Cory, 82.5% at Lanigan, 83.6% at Rocanville and 81.2% at Vanscoy.

Mosaic: Esterhazy, Belle Plaine and Colonsay

Mosaic runs three mines in the province. Its 10-K lists combined operational capacity of 10.8 Mt and 2025 output of 8.5 Mt. Reserves at 31 December 2025 were 476 Mt of ore at 20.8% K2O at Esterhazy, 639 Mt at 19.3% K2O at Belle Plaine and 262 Mt at 26.5% K2O at Colonsay (Mosaic Form 10-K, 2025). Our separate guide to Mosaic’s Canadian potash mines goes through each site in more detail, so this section only covers what matters for comparing operators.

Esterhazy is a conventional mine in eastern Saskatchewan, about 220 km east of Regina, working potash 950 to 1,150 metres down. Brine has leaked into its older K1 and K2 workings since December 1985, and Mosaic announced the closure of those shafts on 4 June 2021, so production now comes from the K3 shaft. The mine plan runs to about 2049 (Mosaic 10-K). Belle Plaine is a solution mine, discussed below. Colonsay is a smaller underground mine that Mosaic runs up and down with demand; it made 0.8 Mt in 2025 against 1.5 Mt of operational capacity, and its reserve grade of 26.5% K2O is the highest of Mosaic’s three mines.

K+S Bethune: the newest mine in the province

Bethune is a solution mine that K+S, a German company, opened in 2017. It was the first greenfield potash mine in Saskatchewan in more than 40 years (Mining.com, 25 May 2022). K+S says Bethune produced “a good 2 million” tonnes in 2024 and targets 4 million tonnes a year, adding about 150,000 tonnes of output each year as it ramps up (K+S company presentation, September 2025). A Johnson Shoyama policy brief puts Bethune at under 10% of provincial potash output and says the expansion began in 2025 (Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy).

K+S describes a two-step method. In primary mining, fresh water is pumped into the potash bed to form a cavern, and the brine is pumped up and evaporated. In secondary mining, saturated salt brine goes into the existing caverns and dissolves the remaining potash, which K+S says saves water and energy. A well pad has 12 caverns.

BHP Jansen: the next mine to open

BHP’s Jansen is the largest potash project under construction in the province. Stage 1 is an underground mine designed for 4.15 million tonnes a year; BHP reported it 84% complete on 16 July 2026, with first production targeted for the middle of calendar 2027 and project expenditure of US$8.4 billion. Stage 2 would add 4.36 million tonnes a year, cost US$6.9 billion and start in the last part of BHP’s 2031 financial year (BHP operational review, 16 July 2026). Together the two stages reach roughly 8.5 million tonnes a year, and NRCan says Stage 2 doubles the mine’s capacity.

The same BHP document reported a non-cash Jansen impairment of US$2.3 billion in its 2026 financial year (confirmed in its 2026 annual report), and about US$150 million of negative earnings from Jansen in the second half of that year. Those are accounting items. The production schedule above is what BHP currently reports.

How much potash does Saskatchewan produce

NRCan estimates Canadian potash production at 25.0 million tonnes in 2024, up 9.1% on 2023, which was 32.8% of the 76.1 million tonnes made worldwide. Canada, Russia and Belarus together made 70.5% of the world total (NRCan potash facts). Because all ten of Canada’s active potash mines are in Saskatchewan, the Canadian figure is effectively the Saskatchewan figure.

Chart

World potash mine production by country, 2025 estimate

Million tonnes K2O equivalent; the eight largest producers

The US Geological Survey measures production in K2O equivalent rather than product tonnes, so its numbers look smaller. On that basis Canada made an estimated 15 million tonnes in 2025, about 31% of the world’s 49 million tonnes (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026). The two series cannot be mixed in one chart, which is why the charts on this page say which basis they use.

Demand comes almost entirely from farms. NRCan says about 95% of potash goes into fertilizer. Nutrien estimates that global shipments reached about 74.5 million tonnes in 2025 and expects 74 to 77 million tonnes in 2026. Offshore buyers are served through Canpotex, the marketing company in which Nutrien and Mosaic hold stakes; Canpotex says it sells Canadian potash to more than 40 countries (Canpotex). For the farm-economy side of the story, see our piece on agriculture and economic growth and our earlier note on Saskatchewan potash and farming.

Where the potash is and how it is mined

Southern Saskatchewan sits on the Prairie Evaporite Formation, a layered sequence of salt and anhydrite laid down when an ancient sea dried out. The formation is 100 to 200 metres thick, and the potash sits in three mineable members within it: Patience Lake at the top, then Belle Plaine, then Esterhazy. The beds are flat-lying and continuous across large areas. The ore is sylvinite, a mix of sylvite (KCl) and halite (rock salt). Conventional mines here work 900 to 1,200 metres below the surface (Nutrien annual information form, 2025).

Chart

Canadian potash production, selected years

Million tonnes of potash (KCl); 2024 is a preliminary estimate; all production is from Saskatchewan

Conventional mines sink shafts to the bed, cut the ore with continuous mining machines, hoist it and crush and float it in a surface mill. The room-and-pillar layout leaves much of the ore behind as pillars: Nutrien’s filing gives overall extraction ratios of 22 to 28% across its five mines. Solution mines such as Belle Plaine and Bethune drill wells instead. Belle Plaine’s reserve estimate assumes only 21.5% metallurgical recovery, and because the brine dissolves whatever it touches, the mine uses no cut-off grade (Mosaic Form 10-K, 2025). A cut-off grade is the minimum grade worth mining.

On the size of the resource, the often-repeated claim that Saskatchewan holds half the world’s potash is not supported by the US Geological Survey. USGS lists Canadian reserves at 1.1 billion tonnes K2O equivalent against a world total of more than 5.9 billion tonnes, which is no more than about 19%. NRCan describes the 1.1 billion tonnes as the world’s largest reserve, while the USGS table lists Russia higher, at 2.0 billion tonnes, after revising Russian figures from government reports. A reserve, unlike a resource, is the part of a deposit that is economic to mine under stated assumptions; our guide to proven and probable reserves explains the two grades of confidence. For the exploration side of bulk minerals such as potash, bauxite and phosphate, see our guide to finding and testing bulk deposits.

How much ore does a Saskatchewan potash mine hoist? A calculator

The calculator below turns a product target into the ore the mine must hoist, using the ore grade, the product grade and the mill recovery. The default values come from Rocanville in Nutrien’s 2025 filing: output 4.64 Mt, product grade 60.5% K2O, mill-feed grade 21.2% K2O and 83.6% recovery. They give about 15.8 million tonnes of ore. The filing reports Rocanville hoisting 16.5 million tonnes a year on average over 2023 to 2025, when output was higher than in 2025, so the two figures are consistent. Enter your own figures to test another mine or a scenario.

What potash pays the province

Producers pay the province through a potash production tax (a base payment plus a profit tax) and a Crown royalty. The government’s information circular describes the base payment as 35% of resource profits within a per-tonne floor and ceiling, and a Crown royalty of 3% of the value of potash from Crown mineral lands. New mines with initial capacity above 2 million K2O tonnes can claim a royalty reduction for their first 36 months, up to C$100 million (Government of Saskatchewan potash circular, February 2023). Check the current rules with the Ministry of Energy and Resources before relying on these terms, because the circular is dated.

The result in the budget is a clear rise. Potash revenue was C$604.1 million in 2024-25, is forecast at C$931.3 million for 2025-26 and is budgeted at C$940.9 million for 2026-27 (Saskatchewan 2026-27 Budget). Invest Saskatchewan reports that potash sales rose more than 18% in 2025, to C$9.3 billion (Canadian dollars) (Invest Saskatchewan, 7 May 2026).

Price and sales outlook

The budget assumes a realized netback price of US$289 per tonne of KCl in 2026-27, rising about 3.2% a year to US$328 by 2030-31, and potash sales of 25.5 million tonnes in 2026-27 growing to 29.6 million by 2030-31 “as the new Jansen mine is scheduled to begin operations” (Saskatchewan 2026-27 Budget). Those are provincial planning assumptions, not a market forecast. Mosaic’s reported realized mine-gate MOP price was US$275 per tonne in the second quarter of 2026, against a cash cost of production of US$84 (Mosaic second-quarter results, 4 August 2026). For price history and drivers, see our page on potash price per tonne, and for the other big producers outside the province, see the largest potash producers.

Chart

Saskatchewan potash sales: budget forecast

Million tonnes KCl, fiscal years; Jansen start is assumed in the later years

Water, brine and land: the environmental record

Company filings describe three issues that matter for the next decade. The first is water inside the mine. Mosaic reports brine inflows at Esterhazy since 1985 and says its Colonsay and K3 mines are also exposed to inflow risk; it announced the closure of the K1 and K2 shafts in June 2021 (Mosaic 10-K, 2025). The second is the water and gas that solution mining needs. Belle Plaine takes its non-potable water from Buffalo Pound Lake, which also supplies the cities of Regina and Moose Jaw, and the mine accounts for about 80% of Mosaic’s potash natural gas use (Mosaic 10-K, 2025). K+S says its secondary mining step uses saturated brine instead of fresh water.

The third issue is surface land. Each mill has a tailings management area, the surface storage for the salt left after the potash is removed. Mosaic’s filing says the Belle Plaine footprint is designed for the volumes in its 2025 life-of-mine plan. Nutrien reports it has automated 49% of its ore tonnes, which it links to its low-cost position.

▶ The seven environmental impacts of mining, explained in clay. · 2:31

Can satellite data help in potash country

Not for finding the potash itself. The deposits are flat beds around a kilometre down, under glacial till, so satellites cannot see them, and potash is not on the mineral list Farmonaut’s mineral detection covers. What satellites can do is watch the surface above a lease: mill and tailings footprints, well pads, surface water and land cover over time. That helps consultants who track change around a licence or compare a site with its neighbours, and it sits next to the fieldwork that drilling and seismic surveys provide. If you hold a licence for another mineral and want it screened, see our satellite-based mineral detection page, use the mining query form or contact us.

▶ Remote sensing for mining, explained in two minutes. · 2:01

Frequently asked questions

How many potash mines are in Saskatchewan?

Ten are producing, according to the Saskatchewan Mining Association: six operated by Nutrien, three by Mosaic and one by K+S Potash Canada (the split by operator comes from the company filings). BHP’s Jansen, the eleventh, is under construction with first production targeted for mid-2027.

Which company owns the most potash mines in Saskatchewan?

Nutrien, with six mines (Allan, Cory, Lanigan, Patience Lake, Rocanville and Vanscoy). Mosaic has three and K+S has one.

What is the largest potash mine in Saskatchewan?

By design capacity it is Nutrien’s Rocanville at 6.5 million tonnes a year. Mosaic’s Esterhazy reports 6.3 million tonnes of operational capacity and made slightly more than Rocanville in 2025, 4.7 against 4.6 million tonnes.

How much potash does Saskatchewan produce?

About 25 million tonnes of potash in 2024, according to NRCan, which is 32.8% of the world total. Eight of the ten mines made about 22.2 million tonnes in 2025 on company figures.

How deep are Saskatchewan potash mines?

Conventional mines work 900 to 1,200 metres below the surface. Belle Plaine, a solution mine, works a potash bed 1,630 to 1,750 metres down.

Does Saskatchewan hold half of the world’s potash?

No. The USGS lists Canadian reserves at 1.1 billion tonnes K2O equivalent out of more than 5.9 billion tonnes worldwide, which is no more than about 19%. Saskatchewan does supply about a third of annual production.

What is the difference between conventional and solution potash mining?

Conventional mines send miners and machines down shafts to cut the ore. Solution mines pump water down wells to dissolve the potash and bring the brine up. Belle Plaine, Bethune and Patience Lake use solution mining.

When will the Jansen mine start producing?

BHP’s July 2026 operational review targets first production from Stage 1 in mid-calendar 2027. Stage 2 is scheduled for late in BHP’s 2031 financial year.

How much does Saskatchewan collect from potash?

The 2026-27 budget projects potash revenue of C$940.9 million, up from C$604.1 million in 2024-25. The royalty is 3% of value and the production tax adds a base payment and profit tax.

Can satellites find potash?

Not directly, because the beds are about a kilometre underground. Satellites are useful for surface monitoring around a lease, and potash is not on Farmonaut’s list of detectable minerals.

Not investment advice. Production, capacity and reserve figures are as reported by the companies and government sources named above and are dated in the text.