CCP authorises Fatima Fertilizer’s acquisition of shares

According to Business Recorder, the Competition Commission of Pakistan has approved Fatima Fertilizer's share purchases in Agritech. The regulator reviewed two stock exchange buys, one in 2023 and another in 2024, and assessed them together as a single deal under a Phase-I merger review. It found that the deal posed no threat to rivalry and did not create a dominant market position.

The commission identified urea and single super phosphate, or SSP, as the relevant product markets, with Pakistan as the geographic market. Both companies overlapped in urea, where their combined share increased, yet the regulator judged that the change created no entry barriers and did not significantly boost market power. There was no overlap in SSP, because Fatima Fertilizer had no presence in that segment.

Fatima Fertilizer later told the CCP that it had divested its entire Agritech holding and no longer sought control, so it held no shares when the determination was issued. The authorisation rests on Section 31(1)(d)(i) of the Competition Act, 2010. The decision highlights how closely ownership changes in the fertilizer sector are scrutinised, given their effect on farm input supply and costs.