Albaugh LLC of Ankeny, Iowa and Hong Kong-based Rotam AgroSciences Ltd have entered into an acquisition agreement. Albaugh will acquire all outstanding shares in Rotam through a merger between the holding company of Rotam and an entity in the Albaugh group of companies.
The parties have agreed to an all-cash transaction with a consideration of NTD 26.23 per share for all issued and outstanding shares in Rotam corresponding to a total consideration of about $197.5 million (U.S. dollars) net of cash and debt at current exchange rates. This represents a 73% premium over the average closing price of Rotam during the past 12 months.
The combination of the businesses will create a leading global crop protection company with total sales exceeding $2 billion and multiple areas of strength.
Albaugh founder and chairman, Dennis Albaugh, said he had long admired Rotam, its strong portfolio, competencies and people.
“And we look forward to welcoming them into the Albaugh family, bringing new strengths to our company and offering unique value to our customers world-wide, partners, people and society at large.”
Complementary offerings
The product portfolios are largely complementary. Albaugh has strong positions in core herbicides, including proprietary oxyfluorfen formulations ALB2023 and ALB2024. They will be paired with the herbicide-tolerant ROXY rice being developed by the California Rice Experiment Station. The ROXY Rice Production is expected to launch commercially in 2023.
Rotam has a highly differentiated portfolio with a relatively higher share of insecticides and fungicides.
The addition of manufacturing facilities in China and India, strong competencies, and resources in research and development will be key to the successful future business development and growth.
The transaction was been unanimously approved by the boards of Albaugh and Rotam and is subject to approval of Rotam’s general shareholders meeting scheduled Feb. 8, 2022. The merger is expected to close thereafter, subject to customary procedures and regulatory approvals.
Albaugh LLC provided information for this article.