Israel Chemicals to buy Scott’s Global Pro for $270m.

Global Pro is a global provider of specialty fertilizers and horticultural and turf specialty products.

By GLOBES’ CORRESPONDENT
Israel Chemicals Ltd. announced on Tuesday that it is buying Global Professional, a specialty fertilizer unit of Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. for $270 million.
“Israel Chemicals’ interest in Scotts’ Global Pro business, a well known brand in specialty fertilizers, derives from our intention to increase our focus on environmentally-important fields whose growth is being accelerated by global trends. This acquisition will establish Israel Chemicals as the leading player in certain specialty fertilizers and specialty inputs markets in which we have been active for many years,” said Yossi Shahar, executive vice president corporate development at Israel Chemicals. “Scotts’ Global Pro business is an excellent complement to our existing specialty fertilizers capabilities that will give us a broader portfolio of branded, environmentally- friendly products, an international platform for growth, stronger R&D capabilities and significant additional marketing expertise.”
Global Pro is a global provider of specialty fertilizers and horticultural and turf specialty products.
Israel Chemicals said that it will finance the acquisition from its own resources, and expects to close the deal during the first quarter of 2011.
Scotts’ Global Pro had non-GAAP earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $31.4 million on $242m. revenues in the fiscal year through September 2010. The company’s customers include commercial nurseries, greenhouses and specialty crop growers in the Americas, Europe, Kenya, the Far East, and Australia. Its products include a broad line of proprietary high-quality controlled-release fertilizers (CRF), slow release fertilizers, water-soluble fertilizers (WSF), plant protection products, wetting agents, growing media and grass seeds, sold under well-known brand names, including Osmocote, Sierrablen, Peters Professional and others. The acquisition is expected to double Israel Chemicals specialty fertilizer’s annual revenues to half a billion dollars.
Israel Chemicals will acquire Scotts’ Global Pro’s brands, products, employees, R&D resources associated with business as well as its facilities, including three factories in the US, UK, and the Netherlands, and three peat mines in the UK. Israel Chemicals plans to merge these activities into its fertilizers division.
One of Global Pro’s key assets is its global technical sales and marketing force, which accounts for over 200 of its 340 employees, and its strong research and development capability.
“We believe that the significant advantages the acquisition of Scotts’ Global Pro will provide us, together with the synergies that we expect to achieve and our existing global platform, will enable us to accelerate the growth and profitability of our specialty fertilizers business unit, and to establish the combined company as a $500m. specialty fertilizers and horticultural/ turf inputs powerhouse,” said Yossi Zidon, senior VP of Israel Chemical’s specialty fertilizers division.