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A line of local leaders and company executives donned hard hats and high-visibility vests on Tuesday to lift ceremonial shovels and officially start the construction on the K+S expansion at its Bethune mine – all while heavy equipment got on with the first phase behind them.
The company announced its long-term growth plan, called “Ramp Up,” in 2022, and just held the official start to construction this week.
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“That begins the two-decade story we’re going to have of continued growth in the province,” said Sam Farris, president of K+S Potash Canada.
The project is expected to nearly double the mine’s production, up to four million tonnes, by about 2040.
“This allows us to really participate in the natural market growth of the potash market that is tied to the rising population and, really, our ability to feed the world’s population,” said Farris.
The whole project is expected to cost about $3 billion.
Other potash projects in the province have recently been pushed back due to higher costs – the first phase of the BHP Jansen potash mine is being pushed to 2027, while the second phase is being pushed back to 2031.
When asked about concerns around the cost and possible slowdowns, Farris pointed to the construction equipment running behind him. He said it’s a long-term project, they’ve done the planning and they’ll make sure things are adjusted when they need to be in order to make it a success.
“We’re here in the province, we’re committed to growing in this province, and we’re really putting that into action today with our construction,” said Farris.
K+S Potash Canada President Sam Farris on Sept. 9, 2025. (Lisa Schick/980 CJME)
Carin-Martina Tröltzsch, COO at the K+S head office in Germany, said the potash business is doing well right now, with a strong market. In the short term, she said the company predicts prices may go down, but they’ll rebound after a period, something which she said it good for the kind of long-term investments being made at the Bethune mine.
“We strongly believe in potash, so that is our core business and will remain the core business for the future,” said Tröltzsch.
Colleen Young, Saskatchewan’s energy and resources minister, was present at the groundbreaking. She said she’s happy to see the investment from K+S and to see shovels in the ground.
The minister said it’ll be a while before production begins at the expansion, but said the royalties the project generates will come as a big contribution to the provincial economy, though she didn’t give an estimate on what the increased royalties might be.
During construction, the project will add 500 employees to the mine, and will generate 50 permanent jobs once it’s up and running.
