Development of potential of potassium ore mining, sulfate fertilizer production in Kaliningrad region and selling SOP (potassium sulfate) in the world market

Abstract

The authors have studied the prospect for development of potential of potassium ore mining and sulfate fertilizer production in Kaliningrad region. The factors have been explored in the terms of world trends in the potassium sulfate (SOP) market including pricing, development of production facilities, supply and demand. Global tendencies support the actuality of the chosen topic. By 2050 the world population is expected to increase up to 10 billion people, so the demand for mineral fertilizers will go up due to expansion and growth of agricultural business and mineralization of sown areas. Russia has limited number of deposits which can be used to produce potassium sulfate, but Kaliningrad region is a raw material base of potassium-magnesium and polygallite salts including the Severo-Krasnoborskoye and the Nivenskoye deposits and the Poddubniy site. Thus, there is an opportunity of creating a cluster of mining and chemical enterprises in the area. The Nivenskoye deposit is the most explored and prepared for industrial exploitation. At present a mining and processing plant is being designed there. Developing the potential of manufacturing sulfate fertilizers in Kaliningrad region presupposes increasing export of the product which is generally made for the foreign markets. The authors consider the prospects for selling potassium sulfate as the result of developing mining enterprises and study the weaknesses in the regional infrastructure on the base of open resources. They estimate the impact of development of potential of potassium and magnesium ore mining on the regional economy and make SWOT-analysis of the impact of mining and chemical enterprises cluster on the development of Kaliningrad region.