Yara Announces Sale of Phosphate Mining Project in Minas Gerais for $410 Million

To Focus on Food Solutions and Other Sectors, Yara Announced the Sale of Its Phosphate Mining Project in Minas Gerais to EuroChem for US$ 400 Million. The Project Has an Estimated Capacity to Produce 1.2 Million Tons of Phosphate Rock

Yara signed with EuroChem a stock purchase agreement aimed at selling its Salitre phosphate mining project in Minas Gerais. The agreement reached a value of US$ 410 million and is part of the company’s strategy to concentrate on food solutions, premium products, and also the viability of the hydrogen sector.

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Phosphate Mining Project Impacted by the Pandemic

According to Yara, Salitre is still an attractive project for investors, but the progress of the phosphate project has been impacted by the worsening of Covid-19, and the construction time and capital expenses, which are still significant, need to be finalized.

The divestment from the phosphate project in Minas Gerais supports the company’s shift, reallocating capital and risk appetite over the coming years toward the company’s strategic focus areas.

According to Yara’s CEO and President Svein Tore Holsether, the sale of the phosphate mining project in Minas Gerais allows the company to further enhance its strategic focus based on its strong competitive advantages. Yara Brasil will continue to play an essential role in the growth agenda, and the transaction allows growth to be pursued with a clearer downstream focus.

Phosphate Project Has Capacity to Produce 1.2 Million Tons Per Year

Yara started the Salitre project in 2014 in the state of Minas Gerais, and its assets include phosphate mining operations, including tailings dams, which estimate a production capacity of 1.2 million tons of rock per year and a project underway for the construction of phosphate processing operations with an estimated production capacity of 1 million tons per year upon completion. The capital expenditure required to achieve the completion of the phosphate project in Minas Gerais is nearly the same size as the value of the agreement.

The transaction is expected to be completed in about six months and is conditioned on obtaining customary closing conditions and the necessary local regulatory approvals. It is noteworthy that Eurochem is already present in the Brazilian fertilizer market through Fertilizantes Tocantins, where it took control last year.

Get to Know Yara Brasil

With the mission of feeding the world and protecting the planet responsibly, Yara is a truly international company with production, service, and sales operations, research, and support in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia, present in around 60 countries.

The company aims to achieve better performance than expected, take the initiative, and work consistently and aligned with its ambitions. Yara was founded in 1905 and has gone through various historical moments in mining, currently employing over 17,000 individuals who contribute to poverty reduction, feed 262 million people, and also help reduce environmental impact.