Washington is widening its search for alternative potash supplies as the United States moves to restore trade links with Belarus while backing the development of a major potash project in Gabon. President Donald Trump said the US was working on a “massive deal” to purchase Belarusian potash at prices below those paid to Canada, which currently supplies the overwhelming majority of US potash imports, as reported by Business Insider Africa. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has also confirmed that potash exports to the US have resumed following the easing of American sanctions, signalling a broader thaw in commercial relations between Washington and Minsk. Potash is a critical fertiliser input and has been added to the US Critical Minerals List, increasing its importance to American agricultural and supply chain policy.
At the same time, Gabon is emerging as a potential Atlantic-facing supplier to the US market through the Banio Potash Project, located near Mayumba on Gabon’s southern Atlantic coast. The US International Development Finance Corporation committed $3 million in project development funding to Millennial Potash in 2025 to support a definitive feasibility study assessing the technical, economic and logistical viability of the proposed mine. The project has reported measured resources of 648.2 million tonnes, alongside 1.8 billion tonnes of indicated resources and 3.56 billion tonnes of inferred resources. Its development plan is initially assessing production of about 800,000 tonnes of muriate of potash annually, with the project’s Atlantic location potentially providing a relatively direct maritime route to international markets, including the United States.
The developments underline a broader shift in the global fertiliser market as Washington seeks to diversify supply chains beyond Canada and strengthen access to strategically important minerals. For Gabon, Banio could become an important source of export revenue and industrial investment if the project progresses from feasibility to construction and commercial production, although the US funding is development support rather than a construction financing commitment or guaranteed American offtake agreement. The project also places Gabon alongside the Republic of Congo, whose Kola potash development offers another Atlantic-based supply option, as African producers seek to position their mineral resources within increasingly strategic global supply chains. US goods imports from Gabon reached an estimated $603.1 million in 2025, according to the US Trade Representative, illustrating the existing commercial relationship that could expand if Banio ultimately reaches production.
