ICL President Akiva Mozes
Potash Corp raises Israel Chemicals stake to 13.9%
World's largest fertilizer company buys 18.5 million shares of Israeli company for NIS 870 million
Canadian fertilizer giant Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, the world's largest fertilizer company and largest producer of potash, purchased 18.5 million shares of ICL at NIS 47 a share, or a total of NIS 870 million ($232 million), Calcalist reported on Sunday.
The acquisition raises Potash's stake in the Israeli company by 1.5%, to 13.9%.
Potash now owns about 176 million shares of ICL, the world's sixth-largest producer of potash and the second-largest company listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
The current purchase follows Potash's purchase of 8 million ICL shares at the end of January, and a purchase of 6 million shares around the same time. It had owned about 11.35% of the Israeli company before these recent purchases.
About two weeks ago Potash reported a 70% drop in quarterly earnings and issued a profit outlook well below expectations, sending the fertilizer maker's shares down more than 6%.
However, the world's largest fertilizer producer said it was optimistic that fertilizer demand in 2010 would be well above dismal 2009 levels as farmers scramble to replenish soil nutrient levels and dealers restock supply.
"Even though fertilizer demand can be deferred on a short-term basis, as we saw in 2009, the long-term requirement cannot be denied. We enter 2010 with a sense of optimism," Chief Executive Bill Doyle said in a statement.
Reuters contributed to the report
