Potash maker Nutrien to sell stake in Argentina’s Profertil for $600 million

Nutrien said on Monday it will sell its 50 per cent stake in Argentina-based nitrogen producer Profertil for $600 million, as the world’s top potash producer shifts focus away from South America.

The stake will be acquired jointly by agribusiness companies Adecoagro and Asociacion de Cooperativas Argentinas (ACA) through an 80 per cent-20 per cent partnership, the companies said.

Nutrien said that oil and gas producer YPF, which holds the remaining 50 per cent stake in Profertil, will have 90 days to exercise its right of first refusal.

In March 2024, Reuters reported that Nutrien was mulling the sale of Argentina, Chile and Uruguay assets after steep losses in the region.

Its troubles in South America came as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent prices skyrocketing in 2022 only to collapse the next year as global supplies stabilized.

Earlier this year, Nutrien’s Brazilian unit said it would sell its fertilizer blending plants in the country.

The Canadian fertilizer maker reported about $60 million in proportionate earnings from its Profertil stake over the last four quarters.

“The agreement to sell our equity stake in Profertil advances our strategy to focus on assets and geographies that are core to our long-term vision,” Nutrien CEO Ken Seitz said in a statement.

Proceeds will be used for growth investments, share buybacks and debt reduction, the CEO added.

Profertil, based in Bahia Blanca, is the region’s largest granular urea producer, supplying about 60 per cent of Argentina’s demand and producing 1.3 million tonnes of urea and 790,000 tonnes of ammonia annually.

The transaction expected to close before the end of 2025.

(Reporting by Sumit Saha and Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)