The Salt Supply Chain that will De-Ice North America's Roads

Atlas Salt has confirmed an expansion of its partnership with Sandvik Mining to support the Great Atlantic Salt Project in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The move, following an updated feasibility study, focuses on enhancing supply chain resilience by increasing steady-state production capacity to 4 million tonnes per year. This is a significant rise from the 2.5 million tonnes originally planned.

By integrating high-capacity electric mining systems, the project aims to stabilise the availability of de-icing salt for the North American market. The expanded scope ensures that the project can meet the full construction and operational requirements needed for this scaled-up production.

Integrated delivery and technical alignment

The partnership designates Sandvik as an integrated project delivery partner, tasked with aligning mine design and equipment selection with safety and productivity objectives.

For supply chain leaders, this integrated approach is intended to provide greater execution certainty and operational readiness. The commercial value of the Sandvik-supplied equipment and services is now estimated at US$132m, a substantial increase from previous estimates.

The investment covers the delivery of underground mobile mining equipment, automation tools and digital systems. To further support the project's capital requirements, Sandvik has expressed a non-binding financing arrangement to assist with the acquisition of these advanced mining technologies.

Swedish engineering and global leadership

Sandvik AB is a Swedish multinational engineering company that provides high-tech solutions for the manufacturing, mining and infrastructure sectors.

Founded in 1862 by Göran Fredrik Göransson, it has grown to 41,000 employees, with operations in over 150 countries.

The company organises its operations into three primary business units: Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions, Sandvik Manufacturing and Machining Solutions, and Sandvik Rock Processing Solutions.

As a pioneer in battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) and autonomous mining systems, Sandvik provides the technical foundation for the Great Atlantic project's shift away from traditional diesel-reliant extraction methods.

Mitigating overseas import reliance risks

The Great Atlantic project is positioned to address vulnerabilities in the Eastern North American road salt market.

Currently, approximately 25 million tonnes of de-icing salt is used on US roads annually, with 30% to 40% of that demand met by imports from Chile and North Africa.

Ageing mines and rising overseas shipping costs have threatened the long-term security of domestic supply. By leveraging high-efficiency electric fleets, Atlas Salt aims to alleviate this reliance on imports.

This transition to a domestic, lower-carbon supply source provides a more stable and predictable logistical framework for local authorities and transport departments across eastern Canada and the US.

Electrification and reducing operational risk

A central component of the strategy is the deployment of a predominantly battery-electric underground fleet. This approach is intended to reduce diesel emissions, underground heat load and ventilation demands.

For the supply chain, this translates to improved long-term cost certainty and reduced energy intensity over the life of the project. Sandvik’s technology platform, including AutoMine and digital fleet management tools, will be used to manage the fleet effectively.

The equipment list includes high-capacity continuous miners, 50-tonne battery-electric haul trucks, and 18-tonne loaders. These electric units are designed to operate efficiently within Newfoundland’s geological conditions while maintaining high throughput and reliability.

Partnership supports long term execution

Nolan Peterson, President and CEO of Atlas Salt, said: “The UFS reflects the scale and longevity of the Great Atlantic salt project, and our relationship with Sandvik has evolved accordingly.

"What began as an equipment supply arrangement has developed into a long-term strategic partnership aligned with construction, ramp-up and decades of expected operations. This partnership supports execution certainty, operational readiness and the disciplined development of the project.”