Good morning to the members of the committee. I appreciate the invitation and your time today.
For those of you who aren't familiar, let me tell you a little about Mosaic and the work that we do. Mosaic is the world's largest producer and marketer of concentrated potash and phosphate, with over 9,000 employees globally, and about 2,200 of them in Saskatchewan. Our operations and joint ventures span across nine countries. All of our Canadian operations produce potash. We completed $8.9 billion in sales in 2015 and have $3 billion in expansion projects under way, including the world's largest potash mine shaft project at our Esterhazy location in east central Saskatchewan. We own assets to the full spectrum of the value chain that takes minerals from raw ore right to finished product that is delivered to customers in over 40 countries worldwide.
Canada is the world's largest producer of potash, with over 30% of global supply. Farmers around the globe depend on our products to help nourish their crops and to maximize the food they can grow on every acre of farmland. Our mission is to ensure global food security by helping the world grow the food it needs. The United Nations estimates that the world population will climb to nine billion by 2050. The world's farmers must produce more food and fuel, and will need more fertilizers to do it. In fact, fertilizers are currently responsible for producing half of the world's crop yields. This last year, in particular, has been characterized by challenging conditions in the agricultural and broader commodities' markets. The steep decline in fertilizer prices and of fertilizer company stock prices follow these trends and were, to some extent, exacerbated by an overstated market perception that increasing crop nutrient supply would outpace demand for years to come.
In a challenging economic climate, innovation is more important than ever as an ingredient to success. We conducted more than 500 product trials last year with highly regarded private researchers and universities, as well as customers and growers. Mosaic has developed a number of premium products that increase crop yields and combat nutrient deficiency. These products are highly sought after by customers in Asia, South America, and across North America. We are dedicated to increasing the sustainability of our business and reducing our environmental footprint. I have a few examples I'd like to share with you.
The use of water is necessary in our processes; however, we are continually looking for ways to use less and recycle what we do use. In our Canadian operations, we currently reuse or recycle 90% of the fresh water we consume. By 2020, Mosaic has made a company-wide commitment to reduce fresh water use in operations by 10% per metric tonne of product. In 2015, we achieved a 2% reduction in fresh water use from the 2012 baseline. We've also made a commitment to real, achievable targets to reduce GHG emissions when meeting the demand for customers. We are proud of our record to date and have committed to reducing direct GHG emissions and purchased-electricity GHG emissions by 10% per tonne of finished product by 2020.
An example of a project that has helped us reduce our emissions is our Belle Plaine facilities' agreement with an industrial partner, which sends water to be used in a cooling process at a nearby plant. The heating water returns to our facility for use in potash production, allowing Mosaic to reduce the amount of energy that would have otherwise been spent on heating water by nearly 183 million kilowatt-hours per year. That's the equivalent of reducing CO2 emissions into the air by 35,600 tonnes, or the equivalent of taking over 7,500 passenger vehicles off roads each year. Also, we have made a decision to transition to electric vehicles from diesel in our underground mine operations. This is ongoing and will continue into the coming months and years.
As far as overall energy consumption goes, we've established a company-wide target to reduce our total energy use by 10% per metric tonne of product by 2020. We have a variety of automation products that will turn off heavy equipment when not in use. We routinely make improvements on our operating equipment, such as improved efficiencies in the various boilers and dryers we use, as well as revamping many of our heating and lighting systems. In 2015, the company achieved a 5% reduction in energy use from our 2012 baseline.
Let me close by saying we greatly appreciate your efforts to consult with industry and listen to our concerns. As the Government of Canada develops its climate change policy, we urge you to collaborate with leading industries such as ours. Together we believe we can develop the right strategy to create a more prosperous and sustainable country. We are concerned that setting unachievable emission reduction targets will not only hinder our ability to feed the world's growing population, but also discourage global companies like Mosaic from incremental investment in Canada for new facilities, expansion, and upgrade in existing facilities.
Mosaic strongly supports additional efforts to reduce emissions through offsets, cogeneration, carbon capture and storage, and energy efficiency. The most recent federal budget pledged $2 billion to support provincial and territorial actions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We recommend that the government earmark some of the $2 billion to establish an energy efficiency program that will assist with upfront capital cost for new projects. This would help support sectors such as ours, as we work to access remaining emissions reduction opportunities and increase competitiveness.
We believe that the Government of Canada has the opportunity to take advantage of advancements made by the fertilizer industry, by recognizing and promoting the 4R nutrient stewardship: the right fertilizer source at the right rate, at the right time, and in the right place. We also look to you to support an enabling trade from the development of transportation infrastructure across the country.
Mosaic would be pleased to continue this dialogue at any time.
I'm happy to answer your questions now.