Outstanding Results from Agronomic Tests on Grass

RNS Number : 8933A

Harvest Minerals Limited

17 September 2018

 

Harvest Minerals Limited / Index: LSE / Epic: HMI / Sector: Mining

17 September 2018

Harvest Minerals Limited ('Harvest' or the 'Company')

Outstanding Results from Agronomic Tests of KPfértil on Grass

Harvest Minerals Limited, the AIM listed fertiliser producer, has received outstanding results from recent agronomic studies testing KPfértil, its direct application natural fertiliser and remineraliser product, on Brachiara (or Signal grass). 

Highlights

·     Agronomic tests demonstrate that as a slow release source of potassium ('K') and phosphate ('P'), KPfértil outperforms traditional Super Triple Phosphate ('TSP') fertilisers, increasing both plant growth (dry matter production) and yield (agronomic efficiency)

·     The application of KPfértil improved the pH and nutrient content of the soil including potassium, phosphate, calcium ('Ca') and magnesium ('Mg').

·     The study concluded there was a 53% increased concentration of phosphorus in the soil compared to using TSP meaning that KPfértil provided continued fertilisation for further crop cycles, highlighting the slow release, long term properties of KPfértil

·     Signal grass is the most widely used grass for pasture in Brazil with over 40 million hectares planted

·     Results create a significant new market opportunity for the Company which has already generated sales

·     Tests were conducted by the Federal University of Uberlândia ('UFU'), an institution approved by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply ('MAPA').

Harvest's Executive Chairman, Brian McMaster, said, "These results confirm the long term effectiveness of KPfértil as a remineraliser for grass pasture; opening up a huge market for us given that Brazil has over 40 million hectares of signal grass planted. Even though these tests were completed only recently, our sales team has already secured several small orders so that customers can begin to see the benefits for themselves. We expect this take-up rate to increase as we develop and implement our market strategies to the local graziers."

To view the announcement with illustrative diagrams please use the following link: 
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/8933A_1-2018-9-16.pdf

Further Information

The study was conducted by UFU, an institution approved by MAPA, to assess the effectiveness of using KPfértil as a soil remineraliser for Signal grass (Brachiaria) compared to traditional fertilisers.  In particular, the tests examined the residual or slow release nature of KPfértil that enables plants to continue to receive essential nutrients over a longer period of time, thereby improving the effectiveness of the application.

The tests included measuring:

·     the increase in plant growth (dry matter production)

·     the amount (and accumulation of) nutrients including P, K, Ca and Mg in the leaves (aerial part of the plant)

·      the nutrients available in the soil including, P, K, Ca and Mg

The study was conducted in sandy and clay rich soil that had been used in previous agronomic studies and is common to the areas occupied by our clients. This study compared a range of fertiliser options from a control dosage, containing no K and P, through to a high-end commercial fertiliser containing Muriate of Potash ('K') and TSP (considered the most effective source of P in the market). The study was carried out over two consecutive 40-day cycles with no additional fertiliser, including KPfértil, being applied following the initial dosage.

Results

Agronomic Efficiency Index

The study concluded that after the second cycle, the Agronomic Efficiency Index ('AEI'), which records the increase in plant growth per unit of nutrient applied, values from KPfértil compared to TSP, were:

·     Sandy soil - 627.7% (KPfértil  powder) and 1,046% (KPfértil filler)

·     Clay rich soil - 134.5% (powder) and 119.5% (filler)

This clearly demonstrates the strong slow release nature of KFfértil, which releases the P into the soil in a more gradual way, favouring its absorption by plants over time compared to TSP, making the filler over ten times as effective as TSP in sandy soil after 80 days.

Dry Matter Production

Treatment	Source		Dose K2O	Dose P2O5	Clay Rich Soil	Sandy Soil
		--------- mg kg-1 ---------			-------------- g ------------
1	Control (without K and P)		0	0	8.73	8.98
2	MoP		80	-----	16.70	12.85
3	TSP		-----	253	13.74	9.02
4	MoP + TSP		80	253	16.30	17.21
5	KPfértil (filler)		20	63	8.61	11.63
6	KPfértil (filler)		40	127	13.27	12.59
7	KPfértil (filler)		80	253	14.71	14.62
8	KPfértil (filler)		160	507	18.22	15.52
9	KPfértil (powder)		20	63	11.90	9.73
10	KPfértil (powder)		40	127	12.22	10.89
11	KPfértil (powder)		80	253	15.47	10.66
12	KPfértil (powder)		160	507	17.87	15.66

 After the second cycle, the Signal grass plants were submitted for biometric evaluation with the dry matter produced, being the weight of new plant growth less water content, being weighed (Table 2).

Table 2 - Dry matter production from 2 cycles of Signal grass plants

The Study concluded that, applying the same dose of P and K as KPfértil in the clay rich soil (T7 filler and T11 powder), produced 90.24% (T7 = 14.71g) and 94.90% (T11 = 15.47g) of the dry matter produced using conventional fertilisers (T4 = 16.30g).

Similarly, the Study concluded that applying the same dose of P and K as KPfértil in the sandy soil, (T7 filler and T11 powder) the green matter production reached 84.95% (T7 = 14.62g) and 61.94% (T11 = 10.66g), respectively, when compared with the conventional sources of P and K (T4 = 17.21g).

These results demonstrate that in like-for-like dosages, KPfértil will perform almost to the same standard as traditional fertilisers, and by applying slightly more KPfértil, the performances can be identical.  The significance of these results is that, as KPfértil is substantially cheaper than the traditional sources, farmers can obtain a clear economic benefit from using KPfértil with no decrease in effectiveness.  This benefit is further increased by the long term properties of KPfértil as KPfértil releases the nutrients slowly. As a result, it is expected that dry matter production would be better for KPfértil than traditional fertilisers over further cycles as shown by the residual levels of P in the soil.

Residual Effect of P in Soil

After the second cycle the nutrient levels in the soil were measured and it was observed that the P from the conventional TSP source was depleted in the soil, which slowed plant growth, while it was observed in the areas to which KPfértil was applied that the P wasn't depleted and there was comparably improved plant development.

The study demonstrated that KPfértil is more efficient in raising P levels than both TSP and the complete MoP + TSP treatment (Table 03) with P levels from filler 53% higher than for MoP + TSP.

Treatment	Source		Dose P2O5		Clay Rich Soil	Sandy Soil
		mg kg-1		------------- P in mg dm-3 ------------
1	Control (without K and P)		0		2.90	2.17
2	MoP (conventional source of K)		-----		-----	-----
3	TSP (conventional source of P)		253		5.01	9.81
4	MoP + TSP		253		3.18	10.70
5	KPfértil (filler)		63		2.18	5.42
6	KPfértil (filler)		127		3.48	8.68
7	KPfértil (filler)		253		9.28	16.39
8	KPfértil (filler)		507		17.80	46.17
9	KPfértil (powder)		63		2.85	5.37
10	KPfértil (powder)		127		3.60	6.80
11	KPfértil (powder)		253		6.06	9.55
12	KPfértil (powder)		507		9.50	38.54

Table 3 - Residual Effect of P in soil after 2 cycles of Signal grass plants by treatment.

Next Steps

The results summarised above are the latest in a raft of good test results produced by KPfértil over the past 1-2 years.  Going forward,  we will be conducting a trial over two years demonstrating the long term benefit of replacing traditional fertiliser with KPfértil for Signal grass.

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of EU Regulation 596/2014

*ENDS*

For further information please visit www.harvestminerals.net or contact:

Harvest Minerals Limited	Brian McMaster (Chairman)	Tel: [phone]
Strand Hanson Limited Nominated & Financial Adviser	James Spinney Ritchie Balmer	Tel: [phone]
Arden Partners plc Joint Broker	Tim Dainton Paul Brotherhood Paul Shackleton	Tel: [phone]
Shard Capital Partners Joint Broker	Damon Heath	Tel: [phone]
St Brides Partners Ltd Financial PR	Isabel de Salis Gaby Jenner	Tel: [phone]

Notes

Harvest Minerals (HMI.L) is a Brazilian focused fertiliser producer advancing the 100% owned Arapua Fertiliser Project, which produces KPfértil, a proven, multi-nutrient, slow release, organic, MAPA-certified remineraliser.  KPfértil offers many economic and agronomic benefits and addresses the significant demand for locally produced fertiliser in Brazil, with its abundant agricultural land; currently, the country imports 90% of the potash it uses but has a target to be self-sufficient in fertilisers by 2020.  Covering 14,946 hectares and located in the heart of the Brazilian agriculture belt in Minas Gerais, Arapua is a shallow, low cost mine with an indicated and inferred resource of 13.07Mt at 3.1% K₂O and 2.49% P₂O₅.  This is based on drilling just 6.7% of the known mineralisation, leaving significant upside potential. This resource is equivalent over 29 years' production and the known mineralisation expected to support 100+ years' production at 450,000 tonnes per annum.

 

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