First Phosphate Corp. CEO John Passalacqua talked with Proactive about the implications of Agnico Eagle Mines’ subsidiary acquiring Fox River Resources for $94 million and what the move means for the phosphate and LFP battery sectors.
Passalacqua explained that the transaction represents significant validation for the igneous phosphate
market in North America, particularly as Agnico Eagle is traditionally known as one of the world’s largest gold producers.
Proactive: Welcome back inside our Proactive newsroom, and joining me now is John Passalacqua, CEO of First Phosphate Corp. John, it’s good to see you again. How are you?
John Passalacqua: Yeah, I’m great. Good to see you.
Some interesting news is happening in your sector. Agnico Eagle Mines’ subsidiary Avenir Minerals recently paid $94 million for Fox River Resources. That reduces the number of companies doing what you do. What was your initial reaction?
I think it’s great. We welcome Agnico Eagle into the space. It’s quite a departure for the company from gold into fertilizer phosphate and potentially LFP batteries. It’s great to have a new player with deep pockets. Agnico Eagle is doing very well with its gold projects as the world’s second-largest gold producer, so it has lots of free cash. It’s good for the sector and shows capital is going to support phosphate projects. There are only three igneous phosphate projects in North America. Two are associated with igneous anorthosite sites like First Phosphate, and one is the carbonate-type project Agnico Eagle acquired in Ontario.
Do you understand the reasoning behind the move from gold into this sector? Do they see the future opportunity in battery metals and storage?
On one hand it’s puzzling, but on the other it validates our thesis. Phosphate represents 60% of the cathode in LFP batteries, while lithium is only 4%. There’s a major future for phosphate in North America, especially igneous phosphate, which is needed to onshore the LFP battery supply chain. In the acquisition press release, Avenir Minerals cited fertilizer and potential LFP opportunities as reasons for the acquisition. We’ve been saying phosphate is the new gold of the energy transition, so it’s good to see a company like Agnico Eagle validate that.
When a company of that size enters a new area, how does it affect the rest of the market? Do larger companies start paying more attention to projects like yours?
I think so. If you look at the remaining companies in the sector, we’ve had some of the strongest stock appreciation since the acquisition. Nothing has changed fundamentally with our company — we’ve been discussing this opportunity for three years. But having the world’s second-largest gold producer enter the space is exceptional validation. Even research analysts haven’t fully picked up on the significance yet. There’s only been one report written on the acquisition so far. Agnico Eagle is not known for making whimsical purchases, so I believe there’s a clear strategy behind this move.
Do you think phosphate being added to critical mineral lists in North America has also contributed to this shift?
Yes. Phosphate has been added to critical mineral lists in Quebec, Ontario, Canada, and the United States. More recently, Canada added it to its clean technology and strategic minerals list. During parliamentary discussions, one member questioned why phosphate was being included because of fertilizer use, but another pointed out that there’s a company in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, focused entirely on phosphate for the LFP battery industry. Phosphate is no longer just for fertilizer. LFP batteries now represent about 80% of batteries produced globally, and 60% of the cathode material in those batteries is phosphate. The industry is only now starting to recognize this shift after years of focus on nickel-manganese-cobalt batteries.
Years in the making and an overnight success. John, good to see you again. We’ll continue watching how this develops. Thanks for the update.
Thank you.
Quotes have been lightly edited for style and clarity
