Saskatoon-Reports continued to focus on China last week, with other international financial players and pension funds cobbling together a deal to put forth a competing offer for PotashCorp versus the $130 per share offered by BHP Billiton. This was heightened last week by a report in The Globe and Mail, which cited a source close to PotashCorp as saying this was a viable option. Even The Mosaic Co. was reportedly a possible component of the consortium according to the paper, which said key PotashCorp management would remain in place. Money would reportedly be raised from participants as well as debt, and speculation was that nitrogen and phosphate assets could be sold if necessary. Nevertheless, there remained several questions as to whether the deal would still be acceptable to Saskatchewan and Canadian authorities, and whether the Chinese would get certain potash price guarantees for their trouble. This could all depend on how weighty China’s stake in the venture would actually be. Mosaic said it does not comment on rumors. Another report out of China last week was scrapped almost as soon as it appeared. The Chinese magazine Caijing quoted Sinochem Vice President Han Gensheng as saying that $10 billion was too much for the company to invest in PotashCorp, and that it was not a good deal. Soon thereafter, the comments were removed from the magazine’s website, and a retraction was made saying that the interview never occurred.

Denver-Intrepid Potash Inc. has released preliminary potash sales figures for July and August of 2010. The company says it sold 127,000 st of potash during those two months – 52,000 st in July and 75,000 st in August – at an average net realized sales price of $339/st. For the entire third quarter of 2009, Intrepid only sold 111,000 st tons, though at an average price of $458/st (GM Nov. 9, 2009). July and August 2010 Trio sales volumes were 32,000 st, with 9,000 st in July and 23,000 st in August. The average price for the two months was $173/st. Third-quarter 2009 Trio volumes were 40,000 st, with an average price of $246/st. Intrepid says third-quarter 2010 demand from dealers has been robust ahead of what is expected to be a strong fall application season. Intrepid says it is sold out of granular potash through September, and is currently taking orders at higher prices. The current Intrepid potash posting is $360/st FOB, with this increasing to $380/st Oct. 1. Granular Trio is posted at $211/st FOB.

Marysville, Ohio-Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. Executive Vice President and CFO Dave Evans last week told analysts at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Investment Conference that the company will likely land somewhere in the higher end of its earlier earnings-per-share (EPS) guidance (GM June 21, 2010) of $3.25-$3.35 for the year ending Sept. 30, 2010. He said the midpoint of that guidance represents about 25 percent growth versus 2009. Fiscal 2009 adjusted EPS was $2.62. While Scotts still expects sales growth of 7 percent in its consumer section, it said overall sales growth may dip to the lower end of its 5-7 percent guidance. The company cited summer weather in the Midwest and Northeast that has slowed some sales. Evans said the company’s lawn and garden (L&G) products have done well despite the economic downturn, as people stay at home. In turn, stores like Home Depot have concentrated on lower ticket items, such as lawn and garden, to keep foot traffic in their stores. He said Scotts has seen both consumer and retailer engagement. Evans said Scotts plans to revolutionize its L&G business in the next three-to-four years via application methods and active ingredients that have a better toxicity profile, and with products that are simpler for consumers to use.

Soda Springs, Idaho-Agrium Inc. and Monsanto are contesting Rocky Mountain Power’s proposed steep hike in electricity charges for their Eastern Idaho phosphate mining and production operations. Rocky Mountain Power, a unit of MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co., says it needs to boost rates by an average of 13.7 percent, but much higher for the region’s mining operations. It proposes to raise Agrium’s rate by 15.9 percent and Monsanto’s rate by 19.6 percent. The Idaho Public Utilities Commission, which is reviewing Rocky Mountain Power’s proposal, plans to hold hearings and take public comments. Residential customers would see their rates rise about 8 percent. Customers say a recession is no time to raise rates so sharply.

Toronto-Marsulex Inc. said Sept. 13 that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its Stablex division, a North American provider of hazardous waste services, to US Ecology Inc. for C$80 million. The deal is expected to close Oct. 31, 2010, and is subject to normal and customary closing conditions, including a purchase price adjustment based on working capital. Marsulex said the agreement was a result of the previously announced strategic review (GM Aug. 9, 2010) being made by the company. The strategic review is ongoing, with no timetable for completion. Net proceeds from the deal will be used to repay outstanding indebtedness under the company’s senior secured credit facility.

The Hague-Shell Sulphur Solutions has announced that Shell Research Ltd. has entered into a license agreement with Coromandel International Ltd. The licence enables Coromandel to produce sulfur-enhanced ammonium phosphate fertilizers in India for the domestic market. Production will start at its plant at Visakhapatnam and may extend to the Kakinada unit later. Coromandel, based in Hyderabad, India, is one of the leading fertilizer companies in India and the flagship company of the Murugappa Group. Coromandel is also one of the largest phosphate players in India, specializing in fertilizers, speciality nutrients, crop protection, and retail. Noting sulfur deficiencies in India, Shell says its Thiogro technologies enable manufacturers to include this essential nutrient in their formulations through the incorporation of micron-sized particles of elemental sulfur within the world’s most widely used phosphate fertilizers, such as MAP, DAP, and NPK.

Boulder, Colo.-The U.S. Forest Service is under a federal court ruling handed down nearly two months ago to stop dropping millions of gallons of the fire retardant mixture of water, fertilizer, and other chemicals on forest fires throughout the country. In his ruling, issued July 27 in a 79-page opinion, U.S. District Court Judge Donald Molloy, District of Montana, found in favor of nearly every claim by Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics in a suit filed in 2008 claiming that use of fire retardant is a threat to wildlife and the environment. The court found that the government failed to follow the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act when dumping what the plaintiffs call a “toxic mixture” on the public’s forests. Judge Molloy ruled that the Forest Service and the Fish & Wildlife Service failed to consider the effects of the slurry on plants and animals, or to set any limits on the amount they dump as a part of fighting wildfire. Since the introduction of ammonia-based retardants, reported Marvin Dodge, California forest ranger assigned to the Pacific Southwest forest and range experiment station, a few isolated cases of damage to crops and animals have been reported, including one tanker jettisoning a load of retardant over a California peach orchard and causing skin bleach to the ripening fruit, but no permanent damage. Dodge said claims that livestock are being killed by nitrate poisoning by retardants are unfounded. “Ammonia-based retardants cannot cause nitrate poisoning directly,” Dodge stated. “They must first enter the soil, be converted to nitrates, and accumulated by plants. This process occurs only under special climate conditions and requires two to three weeks. The possibility of injury to livestock is very slight, much less than from a range or pasture fertilization program.”

Whitefish, Mont.-Algae Aqua-Culture Technology has received a $350,000 federal stimulus grant for a commercial-scale greenhouse system that will grow algae to break down wood waste for an organic fertilizer. The algal system will also produce methane through anaerobic digestion of the waste wood, which will be used for mechanical power at a Columbia Falls, Mont., sawmill. The company says the digester will be installed at the Stoltze Lumber Co.’s mill, a long-time, family-owned wood products company. The American Forest & Paper Assn. has found that an estimated 50 million dry tons of forest and wood-related supplies are available to bioenergy users. The grant will allow Algae-Aqua to begin construction on what is expected to be a 5,550-square-foot addition.

St. Paul, Minn.-A new tool from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture can help farmers make better fertilizer application decisions this fall with a Web site that provides access to a 6-inch soil temperature network map. The Web site, at http://gis.mda.state.mn.us/maps/csgsoil.htm, allows users to see marker locations where soil temperatures are being monitored. By clicking on one of the markers in the map, users will see a graph of the past week’s 6-inch soil temperatures and can use the information to determine if the trend is downward, and also note temperatures of 50 degrees or lower for correct anhydrous ammonia application or fall application of urea. So far, soil temperature information collected via cooperative stream gauge locations is available for southern and central Minnesota, but new sites will be added. Actually, the soil temperature data is piggy-backing on stream gauging stations already installed across the state. The natural resources department is upgrading these stations, according to fertilizer management advisor Russell Derickson, and this allows for extra channels to be installed for soil temperatures. “We install our soil monitoring equipment next to their stream gauging station,” Derickson said. Six soil probes were installed in 2009, and another four were added in 2010. The information is all web-based so no one has to drive out to each site with a computer and download data. Instead, the information is beamed to a satellite and back down. Each gauge is equipped with satellite telemetry to provide real-time information to the National Weather Service, local officials, and others.