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Agree with you there manifesto. I only bought this for the first time last week, as to me it looked extremely cheap/the value hadn't been recognised by the market. The flip side of that is investors who are either long term holders and have spent years under water, or investors/traders who bought a few months ago and are sitting on a large profit. They may see the recent rise as a good time to cash in, which is a respectable choice of course (but one they may live to regret . . . hopefully).

Managed to get some more in my ISA and SIPP first thing at 240p and 238p respectively. Very happy to have found this share and excited for the future prospects. Lots of potential short term news flow as well, as far as I can gather. Especially reassuring to see director buys at this level as well.

Thanks

Roughly when was the consolidation?

Sippnoob, I think you're entire entitled to your opinion on the share and it's probably worth ignoring anyone who says otherwise (the opposite being posting inflammatory comments that will likely lead to a similar response).

To respond to your point regarding 'why the secrecy regarding naming the suitor for the stage 2 funding', its most likely because its commercially sensitive information, and quite possibly there could be non-disclosure agreements in place. I confess that I am not overly familiar with the intricacies of business law, however I would be more surprised if the potential suitor was publicly named at this point as opposed to being concealed. Surely?

Maffa - I think you make a number of valid points. One of particular worth is just how much CF could stand to make if this all goes well. I believe his holding is around 123m shares, which for context means the wild swing we saw at the start of the week made him around £6m richer (on paper) in a matter of hours. Of course, as we know that increase didn't last long, but the point is that if he pulls off a successful stage 2 financing, with minimal or moderate dilution, he could become an extremely wealthy man indeed!

I think even the greatest sceptic should be able to acknowledge the fact that the main man is one of the parties with the most to gain from a positive stage financing deal and a successful build. I would advise any weak hands to bear this mind before making any rash decisions (disclaimer - not actual financial advice, dyor etc etc etc)

We were on BBC look north. A good segment which I'm sure you will enjoy.

........... After a blessing by a local priest, Sirius launched the first of the 225m-long tunnel boring machines on Friday that will link Woodsmith with a port on Teesside.

Each of its three boring machines, which are capable of advancing as much as 60m per day, will complete a section of the tunnel and line the walls with a total of 150,000 concrete segments.

“Today marks another important milestone in the delivery of our project,” Mr Fraser told employees, contractors and local dignitaries at the ceremony.

Sirius Minerals is making good progress towards securing $3bn of debt financing it needs to complete development of giant fertiliser mine in North Yorkshire.

The London-listed company said last month it was in talks with a “major global financial institution, over a new funding package for the project, which it hopes to finalise by the end of the month.

If it fails to secure the package Sirius will be forced to slow progress at its sites on the North York Moors and Teesside to avoid running out of cash.

Speaking on Friday at a launch ceremony for its first tunnel boring machine, Sirius chief executive Chris Fraser said the company was making good progress in the discussions with the unnamed institution, believed to be JPMorgan.

“We are pretty confident we will get there,” he said, adding that the new proposal would give the company greater flexibility to pursue “refinancing” and other opportunities “along the way”.

“The best way to describe what we are working on is a capital markets led structure?.?.?.?rather than bank-led project finance,” explained Mr Fraser, a former investment banker.

“Under project finance, it can take six months to go through a change process?.?.?.?to get all of the banks to sign off. But with this proposal you have capital providers who are backing you to manage the risks and deliver the project,” he said.

“You can also build a balance sheet that transfers nicely out of being a project into an operating company.”

Under its previous plan, Sirius was looking to raise $800m to $900m of debt backed by a UK government guarantee, $500m to $700m via a sale of high-yield bonds, and $1.5bn of debt from a group of banks.

Woodsmith is the first deep mine to be sunk in the UK since the 1970s. When finished in 2021 it will be capable of initially producing 10m tonnes a year of polyhalite, a natural fertiliser.

Sirius is digging two 1.5km deep shafts at the site to access a 280m tonne reserve of polyhalite.

The rock will be then extracted via one of the shafts, which are more than 30m in diameter near the surface, and transported to Teesside through a 37km underground tunnel.

The polyhalite will then be processed and the granulated product exported to buyers around the world where it can either be used straight or as part of fertiliser blend.

Although polyhalite is a relatively unknown product, Sirius has secured commitments to purchase up to 8.2 tonnes a year of output from the mine, where it hopes to deliver about a 1,000 jobs.

Shares in Sirius rose sharply earlier this week amid speculation it was close to announcing a funding deal. As well as $3bn of debt, Sirius also needs to raise 400m to $600m of equity to cover increased tunnelling costs.

They were down 1 per cent at 21.22p on Friday, leaving the company valued at just over £1bn

After a blessing by a local priest, Sirius launched the first of the 225m-long tunnel boring machines on Friday that will link Woodsmith with a port on

It's the party that we're all having when the SP reaches £1 (expect champagne and caviar). . . . or the commiseration drinks we'll have when the total value of our portfolios gets to £1 (expect tins of Tennents Super, and cubes of spam and pineapple on a stick).

The MCAP is tiny for the abundant potential available here.

I only heard about the company yesterday and have been researching since. Bought in this afternoon on the strength of all the recent positive news and general prospects. I don't mind that the share has increased such a large amount in such a short period, as the MCAP is still absolutely tiny considering the potential on offer here. If there's a pull back then I'll be adding further, but otherwise happy to sit back and see where this goes. Bags of potential.

Can someone link the rns please?

As far as I can see, today was the biggest day for trading volume in the last 6 months. ISAs clearly going to play a part, but can't help but wonder if something else is brewing. Hope so.

SL - How about the thousands of local jobs it will bring the area for generations to come? Good enough reason?

Myo, I had to chuckle at that. I'm involved in lots of planning applications in Northumberland and I must say there is no council quite like them when it comes to delays and petty issues. You have my greatest sympathy.

Thanks for the responses and links.

Does anyone know the brand names for products that ICL are selling polyhalite (or polysulphate as they call it) under? I'm interested in using some in the garden, but can't seem to find any 'off the shelf' product with it in. Ideas?

I've seen some pretty prudent and detailed analysis on this board of potential share price over the years. Then again, I've probably seen 'this will be £1 by Xmas' written more times than I care to remember over the same period, so can't really argue with your point too much.

I know it will have probably already been discussed a dozen times or more, but say they did raise the extra 400 to 600m through equity, what do people think would actually happen to the SP? Obviously the initial action would depend on the issue price somewhat, but I'm sure I'm not alone in having some spare reserves waiting for stage 2 details to be announced, at which stage I'll likely start buying as much as I can. The thing that is holding the SP back is uncertainty, once the uncertainty is gone will there not just be a big buying frenzy from people like me, which will see the SP climb quite strongly? Perhaps I'm over simplifying the situation, but that's how I see it. Thoughts?