Potash

When we kind of compare potash with nitrogen and phosphates, the market appears relatively calm.

Is that largely because the potash supply chains have been able to avoid many of the disruptions affecting the other major nutrients? Exactly,

that's the view, because we need to remember that Potash market is basically in the hands of three main countries that are not close to the conflicts in the Middle East.

It is Canada, Russia and Belarus.

These three countries, they are not close to the conflicts in the Middle East or involved somehow.

How did we not uncover this here? No,

not urea, but I mean your heavier products, Adapt, Map, Potash, whatever else it might be, you can throw them out to 164 feet.

holy crap, I want to see this.

That's some of the cool stuff with the spreading technology that Derek was talking about is to truly not overlap your spread pattern.

Alex is a seasoned executive with over 43 years of experience in the natural resources industry, specializing in leading multi-billion dollar operations and commercial transactions across the Americas, Europe, and Africa.

He was appointed director of exploration and production for Cepsa in Madrid, now Mueve, in 2020, following an impactful tenure at BHP where he served as president of the North American Shale and Potash businesses, as well as the head of planning and M&A, driving significant cost reductions and asset optimization.

Prior to BHP, Alex held several operational positions in Guatemala, Angola, and Colombia, as well as major leadership roles, including CEO of Madagascar Oil Limited, President of Chevron Canada, and President Chevron Texaco Colombia, having originally launched his career with Texaco in 1984.

Recognized globally for his corporate governance and leadership, he has served on numerous industry and nonprofit boards and was named Hispanic Engineer of the Year in 2004.

And the company, yeah, it was unbelievable, unbelievable.

The company had tried to buy Rio Tinto.

They had tried to buy Potash Corp. both unsuccessful.

They had this pile of cash and shareholders were very uneasy about what had happened with the acquisitions.

And that is Canada's provincial premiers remain divided over whether to use the country's natural resources as leverage in in the ongoing trade dispute with the United States.

Potash has emerged as one of the sharpest flashpoints in that debate.

It's a preview of tension that we are going to unpack in the second half of the program tonight.

And a new Deloitte Canada report out today warns that even a more diversified slate of international trading partners would only feel a part of the economic hold that would be left if the United States were to walk away from the North American trade pact altogether.

He, I mean, I think he loves having Danielle Smith on the scene because she takes all the oxygen and he just sits, like you say, just sits in her shadow, does most of the same things, some worse, some less worse, and doesn't get the scrutiny or the heat.

But yeah, Potash is probably an even better example of leverage because you know, with oil and gas, I take the point that people make, people like Daniel Smith, which is that, you know, if we did that, the Americans would retaliate.

And we do import a lot of oil and gas from the United States.

Most of it is Canadian that has run through their refineries and shipped back to us.

If we were to cut off exports altogether, though, it would cripple American agriculture.

Potash is vital to agriculture everywhere in the world, and the United States imports about 90% of its potash from Canada.

It's difficult to see how they could carry on in the short term, their agricultural sector, without Canadian potash.

Bearing in mind, though, if we were to take such a dramatic step, the Americans would certainly retaliate.

Like the literal nuclear option, the power in wielding those weapons is not so much in using them but in threatening to use them.

Once you've actually used it, though, you are in an entirely different state of affairs.

Potash, as I said, is vital to agriculture.

Canada is the world's greatest producer of potash.

You know, we watch it closely.

Potash has a huge impact on the Saskatchewan Treasury, so we watch that carefully.

We're very bullish on potash

in the long run.

I know.

Potash, yeah, it's absolutely necessary for fertilizer.

And there's so many of these things we import that we have, we have been blessed with a bountiful country.

There are so many things we have in our country that we-

And that is pretty un-Canadian, if I can say that.

Potash? Oil? You think? Are we at that

point? It could be.

Canada has all kinds of leverage if it chooses to use it.

And Donald Trump has been clear that he wants to take it all back.

So we can't overnight change that.

You know, same with Potash.

I actually think that this is a place where Scott Moe needs to be pushed and needs to use the resources, our natural resources as real strategic resources.