New Brunswick

Operations

Mining depth – 400-700 meters
Annual capacity – 0.8 million tonnes KCl, 0.7 million tonnes salt
Products – granular, standard and suspension-grade potash

Performance

Significant Events

• A key focus in 2008 was obtaining permits to build a brine pipeline from Sussex to Cassidy Lake. We made the initial Environmental Impact Assessment application in November 2007. In November 2008, we applied to the New Brunswick Energy and Utilities Board and, after a formal public hearing in January 2009, received approval. The pipeline will provide additional brine handling and disposal capacity for the mine as the need arises.
• Water inflow continues to be an operational challenge. We have stabilized the inflow rate by drilling and grouting into fractures from above and below ground.
• In 2008 we set records for potash produced and for ore tonnes milled.
• In August, PotashCorp Cassidy Lake reached 11 years without a lost-time injury. In November, Sussex reached one year without such an injury.

Community Relations

• Several meetings and discussions were held with regulators, senior government officials and cabinet ministers to exchange information of mutual interest and to address issues, including the Picadilly project and brine pipeline.
• Three formal public hearings were held in the community as part of the permitting process for the brine pipeline. Two additional informal meetings were held with residents who raised concerns about the potential for a brine spill. Some landowners expressed opposition to the pipeline crossing their property.
• The Penobsquis water supply issue continued in 2008. The province has completed a new regional water pipeline to Penobsquis residents, and the citizens were beginning to be hooked up the new water supply in May 2009. PotashCorp has contributed $1.2 million to the construction of the water pipeline system and continues to supply drinking water to residents who have lost wells.

Community Support and Development

• Donations in 2008 totaled $64,408. Top recipients were Sussex Golf & Curling Club, Sussex Murals, Hammond River Angling Association, New Brunswick Wildlife Federation and Dairy Town Classic.
• 2008 in-kind donations were estimated at $61,450 including: donations to Atlantic Balloon Fiesta, Port of Saint John Employers Association, Association Pension and Welfare Committee Trustee, Rotary Club of Sussex, and delivery of water to residents of Penobsquis.
• On June 19, 2008, the General Manager and HR Superintendent presented a $100,000 corporate donation to Portage, the Atlantic youth rehabilitation facility, to construct new buildings.
• We worked closely with Atlantic Canada Opportunity Agency and Business New Brunswick to help create local supplier capabilities for the Picadilly potash project. Results are being tracked by both organizations.

Educational Partnerships and Initiatives

• Two $1,000 divisional scholarships and one $3,000 corporate scholarship were awarded to children of employees.
• In partnership with Sussex Elementary School, we participated in a Career Day in 2008. We also arranged for D.D. Lewis, PotashCorp’s Manager of Community Relations and former Dallas Cowboy, to present programs on substance abuse to students. He also presented to other schools in the area.
• Met with officials of New Brunswick Community College to discuss their new process control technician program, and hosted a surface tour for students in this program. We provided a one-month work practicum for a student from the Community College human resources program.
• We continued to support the co-op program at the community college by hiring one chemical technology co-op student and two instrumentation co-op students for four-month work terms. A co-op engineering student from Dalhousie University was also hired.
• PotashCorp continues to support the University of New Brunswick, Saint John campus. Over five years, we have donated $100,000 toward the construction of the PotashCorp Conference Room for students.

Environmental and Energy Initiatives

• A project was completed to extend the existing natural gas production manifold in order to tie in two additional wells. This project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using natural gas instead of oil as a fuel for the existing boilers.

Awards

• Received the New Brunswick Mining Association Mineral Industry trophy for the mine with the lowest provincial injury frequency rate in 2007.
• Received the Canadian Institute of Mining-New Brunswick Branch trophy for the mine with the lowest accident severity in mines in the province for 2007.
• Received the John T. Ryan Award for mine safety from the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum.

Local Procurement

• In 2008, 26 percent of our purchases (excluding major expansions, raw materials, transportation and energy) were made from local suppliers ($32.2 million).

	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
Annual Production (000 tonnes KCl)	781.1	758.6	742.8	793.2	802.0
Employment
# of employees	330	340	330	339	339
# of female employees	7	9	8	10	10
Gender ratio (% female/total employees)	2.1	2.6	2.4	2.9	2.9
Average tenure (years)	16.8	17.1	17.6	17.6	18.1
Absenteeism rate (% hours absent)	5.8	5.3	5.6	4.3	5.5
Employee training provided (hrs per employee)	51	50	61	57	59
Safety Performance
Lost-time frequency (per 200,000 hrs)	–	–	0.6	0.3	–
Recordable frequency (per 200,000 hrs)	3.6	2.2	2.2	3.8	2.1
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
GHG emissions (000 tonnes)	47.3	48.3	49.8	50.7	52.7
Normalized GHGs (GHGs/tonne production)	0.06	0.06	0.07	0.06	0.07
NPRI Air Pollutants (tonnes)
Nitrogen oxides	46.6	48.0	49.7	52.3	51.1
Carbon monoxide	37.6	37.3	36.4	36.9	37.8
Particulates (dust)	166.4	222.7	155.4	167.7	169.9
Volatile organic compounds	163.9	166.9	166.5	190.6	163.8
Waste to Land (000 tonnes)
Waste salt and clay to mine	1,692	1,514	1,551	1,675	1,764
Emissions to Water (000 tonnes)
Salt brine to sea (dry basis)	264	356	450	750	812
Water Use (000 m3)
Water withdrawn	417.4	388.6	417.9	443.9	417.3
Environmental Expenditures ($ 000)
Operating expenditures	12,636	13,572	18,161	11,813	14,186
Capital expenditures	657	659	395	4,841	75
Energy
Energy costs ($ million)	13.4	15.5	16.8	18.0	21.1
Energy use (TJ)	1,393	1,427	1,433	1,521	1,575
Energy efficiency (GJ/tonne production)	1.8	1.9	1.9	1.9	2.0
Procurement
Local purchasing ($ million)	23.4	31.5	49.5	40.1	32.2
Source: PotashCorp