CCP greenlights Fatima Fertilizer’s acquisition of Agritech shares

The Competition Commission of Pakistan has cleared Fatima Fertilizer's acquisition of shares in Agritech following a Phase-I competition review, according to Business Recorder. The regulator authorised the deal under Section 31(1)(d)(i) of the Competition Act, 2010, as stated in a Tuesday statement. The purchases were made through the Pakistan Stock Exchange in two steps, first in 2023 and then in 2024, and the CCP assessed the combined shareholding from both.

Fatima Fertilizer manufactures and trades fertilisers and chemicals, while Agritech produces urea and granulated SSP fertiliser. The review found a horizontal overlap in the urea market, which raised the combined market share of the two companies. Fatima Fertilizer had no share in the SSP market, so Agritech's position there stayed the same.

During the review, Fatima Fertilizer told the commission it had sold its entire stake in Agritech and no longer sought control. On that basis, CCP concluded that the deal did not threaten to significantly reduce rivalry in the relevant markets. The regulator also stressed that effective merger control matters greatly in fertilisers, given its wider effects on agricultural production, farm households and the economy.