Intrepid Potash - Moab, Utah

Moab, Utah is a high altitude desert, with a landscape formed from the sandstone of ancient seafloors and sand dunes. The area is a mecca for mountain bikers, climbers and four-wheelers looking for adventure.

The Cane Creek potash mine located about 20 miles west of Moab is unique because of the method used to extract the potash ore. The mine began as a conventional underground excavation in 1964, but was converted in 1970 to a system combining solution mining and solar evaporation.

Water from the nearby Colorado River is pumped through injection wells into the underground mine. The water dissolves the potash from layers buried approximately 3,000 feet below the surface. The mineral-laden water (brine) is then brought to the surface and piped to 400 acres of shallow ponds just southwest of the mine. There the water evaporates, aided by 300 days of sunshine and an average of 5% relative humidity, leaving potash (potassium chloride) and salt (sodium chloride) crystals in the pond. A blue dye, similar to food coloring, is added to assist with the evaporation process. If electric power were used to evaporate the brine instead, it would require burning 400,000 tons of coal each year. The solar ponds are lined with heavy vinyl to prevent valuable brine from leaking into the ground and the Colorado River. A series of holding ponds have been constructed to catch any spills and return potassium-rich brine to the ponds. There are no hazardous materials produced or used in the ponds or at the processing plant.

The crystals remaining after evaporation are scooped by giant 25-ton scraper-loaders similar to those used in road building. The blades of the scrapers are controlled by laser beams from the edges of the ponds so they do not dip too low and tear the vinyl pond linings.

The crystals from the ponds are returned to the mill where the potash is separated from the salt by flotation method. They are then dried and screened into premium grades of white potash. Both potash and salt products are processed at the plant facility.

Some 700 to 1,000 tons of potash per day are produced by the mill. Processed potash and salt is moved throughout the plant on covered conveyors keeping the potash pure and overhead costs low.

Two warehouses on site can hold 100,000 tons of potash and 100,000 tons of salt after production. Product is shipped in rail cars or by tractor-trailer rigs.

The Moab facility also has a bagging operation which produces 50 lb. bags of potash and salt for water softener dealers, animal feed manufacturers, oilfield drilling fluids and many other applications.

Looking towards the future...Continued development of the Moab facility guarantees good production for many years.