Perth, Australia-There was much speculation in the Australian press last week that receivers might sell the majority stake owned by Pankaj Oswal in Burrup Holdings, which owns Burrup Fertilisers Pty Ltd., an 850,000 mt/y ammonia producer. Some of this arose from reports that major creditor ANZ, which says it will lose no money on this investment, had appointed corporate advisor Flagstaff Partners to represent it. Reportedly, several major fertilizer players have come forward expressing an interest in Burrup. However, an alternative argument is that receivers PPB Advisory can use cash flow and dividends to repay debt, rather than opting for a sale. Yara International ASA last week reiterated that the receivers are in no position to sell its 35 percent stake. Reportedly, Yara has the right of first refusal, as well as a 20-year ammonia offtake agreement. Yara told Green Markets that it is comfortable with the set of agreements it has around the company. Last week Yara also responded to reports that Oswal attempted to pump $20 million into the venture to avoid litigation. “Pankaj Oswal has continued to produce misleading information ever since Yara rightly led the way in seeking to expose concerns about alleged financial irregularities within Burrup. As a Burrup shareholder, Yara has every right to be concerned about financial irregularities which the receivers have confirmed to exist, and we are not going to respond in detail to this latest smokescreen. It is important to point out, however, that PPB Advisory is not in a position to sell Yara’s shares in Burrup Holdings and the so-called ‘good will offer’ was never made to Yara but to Burrup. Mr. Oswal would be better served by returning to Australia and answering the growing number of serious questions that now exist regarding his activities in the lead-up to and following the appointment of receivers to Burrup.”
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain