NORTH Yorkshire has strengthened its links with China after the company behind a proposed new potash mine signed a major deal.

Sirius Minerals, which is currently in the planning process to build York Potash mine, which would create thousands of jobs on the North York Moors near Whitby, has agreed to supply a million tonnes of the fertiliser a year to China.

It has entered into the agreement with Yunnan TCT Yong-Zhe Company Limited (TCT), one of the fastest growing domestic agricultural products companies in China, for ten years from 2017.

The agreement is conditional upon York Potash collaborating with the company on testing and the results from crop trials of polyhalite, the type of high-grade potash to be mined at York Potash, in Yunnan, as well as Chinese government approvals.

Chris Fraser, managing director and chief executive of Sirius, said they had agreed an undisclosed fixed price per tonne for the first three years, which would be renegotiated from year four onwards. He said the price was “in line with the company’s assumptions”.

He said: “This is a major milestone for the company that further demonstrates the market for polyhalite, supports the economics behind the project and will ultimately help to give confidence in the financing for construction.”

A signing ceremony took place yesterday in Kunming, in Yunnan Province, attended by senior government officials and senior executives from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

Yu Yan Qing, chief executive of TCT, which is based in Kunming, said: “We see great potential in polyhalite as an organic multi-nutrient fertilizer that can provide a competitive advance in agricultural efficiency and helping to increase crop yields and quality in China.

“This is an important step for a long-term and prosperous relationship between TCT and Sirius Minerals.”