SAFCO, SABIC hire investment banks to advise on Ibn Al-Baytar sale

Two Saudi petrochemical giants have hired investment banks to advise on the potential sale of a stake in the Ibn Al-Baytar fertilizer company.
Saudi Arabia Fertilizers Co. (SAFCO) has hired Samba Capital, while Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) has chosen HSBC’s Saudi Arabian unit, the two companies said in separate bourse statements on Monday.
SAFCO is considering taking full control of chemical fertilizer producer Ibn Al-Baytar by buying out its joint venture partner SABIC, SAFCO said in a bourse statement in March.
The two companies said there was no definitive sale agreement yet, and a study which will examine the economic feasibility of the transaction is due to be completed in the first quarter of 2017.
Ibn Al-Baytar is a 50/50 joint venture between SABIC and SAFCO which produces ammonia, urea, compound fertilizer, phosphate, and liquid fertilizer, according to information on SABIC’s website.

Source: Arab News