IFFCO group to lead 90% in Senegal agrochem firm

20 July 2007 16:16  [Source: ICIS news]

By Isha Jha

MUMBAI (ICIS news)--Indian Farmers' Fertilizer Cooperative (IFFCO) will lead a consortium to acquire a 90% controlling stake in the debt-ridden Industries Chimiques du Senegal (ICS), a senior company official said on Friday.

"The partners for the consortium have not been determined yet," IFFCO managing director US Awasthi told ICIS news.

IFFCO plans to restructure the underperforming ICS, which has been a sick unit for the last five years, a senior official at IIFCO said. ICS has not produced material in the last eight months. 

"Production at ICS has been falling and thus IFFCO’s phosphoric acid imports, which are used as feedstock for producing phosphate fertilizers, were suffering," he added. IFFCO already has a 19.09% stake in ICS.

ICS exports the majority of the phosphoric acid it produces to IIFCO, ICS CEO Alassane Diallo told ICIS news.

"ICS uses the remaining phosphoric acid captively to produce diammonium phosphate (DAP) and nitrogen phosphorous potassium (NPK) fertilizers," Diallo said.

ICS produces 660,000 tonnes/year of phosphoric acid, and it produces about 250,000 tonnes/year of NPK and about 50,000 tonnes/year of DAP, he added.

The IFFCO consortium would inject $80m (€57.7m) to recapitalise and restructure the ICS business, Awasthi said.

The Senegalese government is likely to reduce its 46% stake in ICS to 10%, said Diallo. The debt-ridden company was reportedly costing the government about 1%-1.5% of overall gross domestic product (GDP).

($1 = €0.72)

By: Isha Jha
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