Woodsmith project: Anglo American confirms it has spent £2.7bn on Yorkshire scheme since takeover
Mining giant Anglo American has spent £2.7bn on North Yorkshire’s Woodsmith mining project since acquiring the scheme in 2020, the company has confirmed.
Located just south of Whitby in the North Yorkshire Moors, the Woodsmith scheme is a major mining project first launched in 2017 by Sirius Minerals.
Once operational, the scheme will mine for polyhalite – a naturally occurring mineral which can be used as fertilizer. It will then ship the fertilizer globally from Teesside, producing around 30 million tons per annum.
Anglo American confirmed this week that its total spend on the project since the 2020 take-over had now reached around £2.7bn.
Speaking this week at the UKREiiF conference, held in Leeds, Rachel Dolby, head of corporate affairs, land and permitting at Anglo American’s Crop Nutrients division, hailed the major impact of the scheme on the local economy.
She said: “There's still a long way to go for us to get to production, but we're super excited about being part of something that's quite transformational, that will come from North Yorkshire, and in the future be known as a global component and an asset for this region.”
The Woodsmith scheme is set to be one of Europe’s largest mines, and the fifth largest producer of fertilizer in the world.
Ms Dolby’s comments come alongside a new report from Anglo which looked into the Woodsmith scheme’s contribution to the regional economy.
According to the report, the project has added £127m to the regional economy in 2025, meaning a total of nearly £2bn has been generated since 2017 when construction began.
There are 1,000 people currently employed on the scheme, 76 per cent of who are from the region.
Ms Dolby added: “This is a unique deposit, it's natural capital that's under our feet in North Yorkshire, so literally the geology in the ground has given us this opportunity.
“Because this is a naturally occuring mineral, it's also a low carbon option compared to legacy fertilizers, and it can contribute to sustainable agricultural practices, which are going to be needed to reduce emissions in agriculture. It's contributing to the future in a really positive way.”
The latest figures come after Anglo American announced in 2024 that it would “slow” development on the Woodsmith scheme.
The announcement came as the company made a string of major changes to its operations to fend off a £34bn take-over bid from rival mining giant BHP.
The takeover attempt led to Anglo American launching a major restructure which has seen it “simplify” its portfolio to focus on copper and iron ore, as well as crop nutrients – the segment under which the Woodsmith scheme falls.
Through the restructure, Anglo is also aiming to sell off a number of its divisions including its De Beers diamond production division.
February last year also saw the firm announce that it had entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Brazilian nickel business to fellow mining firm MMG Singapore Resorces.
Speaking last year on the Woodsmith scheme, Anglo American CEO, Duncan Wanblad, said the company expects to “ramp up” work on the project no earlier than 2027.
He added: “Unfortunately, we had to slow the project down, and we wanted to make sure we effectively managed to get through major elements of our transformation, but we didn’t stop the project.”