This was in Wall Street Journal
Canada's Western Potash Corp. WPX.T+10.87% is in talks with several Indian and Chinese state-owned and private enterprises that could lead to an investment in, or sale of, the potash miner, a company executive said.
The Vancouver-based company has a market capitalization of about 157 million Canadian dollars, or roughly US$158 million. Industry executives say, however, that potash companies are hard to value given that there isn't much of a forward market in potash. That is unlike other mined resources, where companies and bankers can use the future price of the commodity to value a company.
Last year, China's Sinofert Holdings Ltd. 0297.HK+1.57% approached Western Potash to discuss buying the company, one person familiar with the matter said. John Costigan, a Western Potash vice president, confirmed that talks took place but said they "fell apart in the early stages" and were conducted through a bank. He declined to say whether the talks concerned a sale of the company.
The person familiar with the matter said that Western Potash believed that Sinofert's offer was too low. A representative of Sinofert, a Hong Kong-listed fertilizer producer, didn't return calls asking for comment.
The interest in Western Potash underscores continued demand from emerging-market countries for potash, which is used to make fertilizer, as growing populations and prosperity increase demand for food. Bankers say that Chinese and Indian companies, in particular, are currently actively seeking acquisitions in Canada, the world's largest producer of potash.
Currently the company is in "a lot of conversations" with "various hybrid state-owned enterprises from China consortiums" and interested parties from India, said Mr. Costigan, declining to name the companies. He said his preference would be for a partner that would invest in his company's projects and sign up for the product, rather than a sale.
"We think we can create more shareholder value for partnering versus selling," he said.
The company, which is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, is currently completing a final feasibility study for a mine in Saskatchewan. The company plans to extract 2.8 million tons of potash annually from 2016.