EVART, Mich. – Michigan Potash & Salt Co., LLC, will utilize a $80 million USDA grant it recently received to construct a proposed mining and processing facility in Evart Township, Mich.

The development is projected to produce 400,000 tons of high-grade potash annually, contributing significantly to the local and national agriculture sectors, according to company officials.

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said the USDA would award more than $116 million through its Fertilizer Production Expansion Program to help Michigan Potash and other facilities expand production in California, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. (The names of these other state facilities were not yet available).

Funded by the USDA’s Commodity Credit Corp., the Fertilizer Production Expansion Program provides funding to independent business owners to help them modernize equipment, adopt new technologies, and build production plants.

“When we invest in domestic supply chains, we drive down input costs and increase options for farmers,” Vilsack said. “Through today’s investments to make more fertilizer, the USDA is bringing jobs back to the United States, lowering costs for families, and supporting farmer income.”

Company officials said plans for Michigan Potash have been in the works since 2011 when the company was formed. Since then, the company has been working to obtain necessary water and air permitting requirements, receiving final approvals from the Michigan Department of Environment Great Lakes and Energy in December 2021.

In March 2022, state legislators approved a $50 million subsidy to Michigan Potash, followed up by the Michigan Economic Development Corp. granting the company approval of $225 million in tax-exempt Michigan state bonds in September 2022.

The USDA said the $80 million in new funds for Michigan Potash will be utilized for construction, equipment purchases and working capital for the new production facility expected to yield 400,000 tons per year of high-grade potash.

According to Michigan Potash officials, the company holds mineral rights to over 100 million tons of recoverable potash deposits within the “Borgen Bed,” which lies 7,000 to 8,000 feet beneath 14,500 acres in Mecosta and Osceola counties, based on an analysis by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

John Yellich, a geologist and the director of the Michigan Geological Survey, said the deposit, estimated to be worth $65 billion, could make it a major source of revenue for the state of Michigan.

According to the USGS, the high quality of the mineral resource has the potential to create a multibillion-dollar industry in Michigan that would surpass the state’s historical oil and gas production revenues, as well as create several hundred jobs in Osceola and Mecosta counties, where the deposit is located.

Otie McKinley is the media and communications manager for Michigan Economic Development Corp., in Lansing.

When asked how Michigan Potash’s new mining and processing facility will benefit farmers and the surrounding communities, he told Farm World, “The Michigan Potash project presents a unique opportunity to strengthen the agricultural industry’s supply chain within our state as we embrace our ‘Make it in Michigan’ economic development framework that invests in our people, uplifts and revitalizes our places, and secures strong projects.”

Michigan Potash officials declined an interview for further comment.