there is concern among fertiliser producers that the potash is controlled by two groups -- the Canadians on one hand, and the Belarus-Russian mob on the other. As with rare earths and China, any newcomer in potash will be welcomed as a break on a market stranglehold
Vale and Amazon are coming to break the stranglehold.
Get Ready For A Monster Battle Over Potash And The Future Of The Global Food Supply
The initial thinking, last Tuesday, was that only BHP Billiton had the heft to acquire Potash at a price well north of $30 billion. But then late last week it emerged that Chinese firm Sinochem might be interested, and given that the whole premise of acquiring Potash is that it's a bet on the next generation of Chinese demand (from industrial commodities, to higher end food products), this makes total sense.
ELMAT: Brazil is salivating for this demand...
Whereas a year ago, the talk was all about securing oil rights for demand needs far in the future, suddenly the talk is all about food.
John Durie at The Australian notes some of the big-picture thinking:
"That said, there is concern among fertiliser producers that the potash is controlled by two groups -- the Canadians on one hand, and the Belarus-Russian mob on the other. As with rare earths and China, any newcomer in potash will be welcomed as a break on a market stranglehold."
He also notes that, just like with early-stage gold miners, there's a whole host of upstart potash explorers and miners who saw their shares spike on the news.
Add in the possible interest from Brazil's Vale, and Rio Tinto (both possibly interested in this space, and possibly Potash specifically) and you have the making of a pretty big deal story for awhile, not only for Potash the company, but for scads of smaller players looking to feed the world
Read more: businessinsider.com |
