BOSSES behind a £2bn fertiliser mine have moved closer to appointing contractors for the development.

Sirius Minerals is whittling down bids for work on its York Potash Project.

Construction of the mine, based near Whitby, could start later this year.

Sirius says the project, approved by planners last year, will provide more than 1,000 direct jobs and allow access to the world’s largest and highest grade of polyhalite, a form of potash reputed for delivering strong crop growth.

The business hopes to extract 13 million tonnes of the mineral every year, from an overall defined store of 2.66 billion tonnes.

Chris Fraser, managing director and chief executive, said the company is now poring over contractors’ offers to deliver mine shafts and a transport system, as well as site preparation.

Mr Fraser added the firm is also continuing to fine tune a definitive feasibility study (DFS), which will use suppliers’, consultants’ and engineering firms’ expertise to outline the York Potash Project’s anticipated lifespan of more than 100 years in great detail.

He said that work is due to be completed by the end of March.

Mr Fraser said: “We are continuing to build a very robust business that will be capable of strong returns throughout the many cycles it will experience over its 100-year plus life.

“We thank our shareholders for their patience as we finalise the DFS and look forward to announcing its findings in due course.”

A spokesman added: “The company is confident the final DFS will define a world-class project that will be best in class in many aspects (and is) confident it will execute a financing strategy that will bring the project into production and deliver significant value to shareholders.”

Last month, Sirius’ chairman, Russell Scrimshaw, said the development, which will be the UK’s first potash mine in 40 years, will propel the firm to the forefront of the potash industry.

He added: “This is about a British company set on breaking down the barriers to become a global leader in a product the world will rely upon to feed its growing population.”

Sirius already has a number of supply agreements for York Potash, including a deal with a US-based firm to annually dispatch 1.5 million tonnes for seven years, which could be extended further across two five-year periods.

The firm, which has already spent about £125m on the development, will sink mine shafts at the former Doves Nest Farm, before shifting the mineral underground on a conveyor belt to a handling site at Wilton, near Redcar, for granulation, storage and distribution.

The development has been approved by the North York Moors National Park Authority and Redcar and Cleveland Council’s regulatory committee.

A decision on an adjoining harbour, earmarked for Bran Sands, on the mouth of the River Tees, to load ships carrying exports, is expected from the Government in the coming months.