Agrium to sell some fertilizer assets for CF deal

Agrium Inc., North America's third- largest fertilizer producer, reached an agreement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to sell assets to advance the company's proposal to buy CF Industries Holdings Inc.

Calgary-based Agrium must divest assets in the U.S. Pacific Northwest and northern Illinois that "would have eliminated competition" in the market for anhydrous ammonia fertilizer, the FTC said today in a statement.

The FTC said it found "that each of these markets is highly concentrated and the proposed transaction would further increase concentration levels by reducing the number of significant competitors."

Agrium is seeking to acquire Deerfield-based CF in a $5.07 billion transaction that would create the world's second-largest producer of nitrogen-based fertilizer after Yara International ASA of Norway.

Anhydrous ammonia is a type of nitrogen fertilizer used in the farming of corn, beans and other crops that has advantages over other types of crop nutrients in certain topographies and climate conditions, the FTC said.

Agrium rose 16 cents to C$64.24 at 9:47 a.m. in Toronto Stock Exchange trading. The shares gained 55 percent this year through yesterday. CF climbed 52 cents to $86.98 in New York.