The deal is done, now the only question is when does it close???
ORLANDO, Florida, Jan 5 (Reuters) - A sale by Monsanto Co
<MTC.N> of its cotton seed subsidiary must be carried out
before its acquisition of top cotton seed maker Delta and Pine
Land Co <DLP.N>, Murray Robinson, vice-chairman of Delta and
Pine Land, said on Tuesday.
"I would believe that Monsanto has recognized and has
agreed with the government, perhaps on an informal basis, that
they certainly would not try to retain Stoneville subsequent to
merger with Delta and Pine Land because it would put too much
of the cotton seed marketing capability in one corporate
sphere," Robinson told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines
of the annual Beltwide Cotton conference here.
Robert Fraley, co-president of Monsanto's Agriculture
Sector, announced on Monday the agro-chemical giant would sell
its wholly owned subsidiary Stoneville Pedigreed Seed Co.
through an auction in early 1999.
Industry analysts said the sale was aimed at helping
Monsanto secure final approval from the Justice Department in
Washington of its proposed purchase of Delta and Pine Land. The
sale would also raise needed cash for Monsanto, they said.
Stoneville, with a 10-15 percent market share, is the
second largest cotton seed breeder in the United States after
Delta and Pine Land, which controls about 50-55 percent of the
domestic cotton seed market.
The Justice Department, which oversees anti-trust issues,
asked Monsanto in June for more details of its planned
acquisition, a month after the deal was announced.
Robinson said the review undertaken by Justice was meant to
"ensure that the competitive structure that farmers face is no
less restrictive than it was prior to the merger."
He added that there were still issues that Monsanto and the
government would be discussing before the acquisition of Delta
and Pine Land could be finalized. |
