Millennial Potash Corp. (TSX.V: MLP) (OTCQB: MLPNF) is advancing its Banio Potash Project in Gabon, West Africa, a large-scale deposit located directly on the Atlantic coast. The project has gained strategic importance following the addition of potash to the U.S. Critical Minerals List in 2025, reflecting the commodity's role in food security and the highly concentrated global supply. This designation underscores the potential significance of the Banio project in diversifying sources of this essential agricultural input.
The company has partnered with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), which has committed US$3 million in non-dilutive funding to complete a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS). This study, now underway alongside an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment, is expected to support the company's mining license application in Gabon. The involvement of the DFC highlights the project's alignment with U.S. interests in securing critical minerals and supporting allied nations' development.
Banio sits within the West African Evaporite Basin, where drilling has intersected cumulative potash thicknesses commonly exceeding 100 meters. An updated Mineral Resource Estimate announced in November 2025 reported Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources of 2.45 billion tonnes grading approximately 15.6% KCl and Inferred Mineral Resources of 3.56 billion tonnes grading approximately 15.6% KCl. These represent increases of 275% and 210% respectively over the maiden estimate, from drilling that covers only about 5% of the Company's 1,500 km² license area. The substantial resource growth, despite limited drilling, indicates the project's vast potential.
A Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) completed in 2024 outlined a solution mining operation producing 800,000 tonnes per year of granular muriate of potash. The PEA reported an after-tax NPV10 of US$1.07 billion, an after-tax IRR of 32.6%, initial capital costs of US$480 million, and operating costs of US$61 per tonne. This cost structure is underpinned by solution mining, thick potash seams, simple mineralogy, and coastal logistics, with shipping to Brazil estimated at approximately US$22 per tonne. Brazil is the world's largest potash importer, and Banio's location provides a significant logistical advantage.
The project has attracted both U.S. and Gabonese government support. The U.S. DFC's commitment to non-dilutive funding for the DFS is a key de-risking step. Potash's addition to the U.S. Critical Minerals List in 2025 further enhances the project's strategic value, as it addresses concerns over supply concentration and food security. Banio has the potential to become Africa's first potash mine while supplying Brazil, the United States, Europe, and Asia.
The company is led by a team with a successful track record, having previously built and sold companies like Millennial Lithium, Potash One, Allana Potash, and Energy Metals for approximately $490 million, $430 million, $170 million, and $1.8 billion respectively. Management and insiders hold approximately 40% of Millennial's outstanding shares, aligning their interests with shareholders.
For more information on Millennial Potash, visit the company's website at Millennial Potash. To register for the conference where this was presented, visit Moody Capital Conference. For coverage of the conference, see IBN's coverage.
