Manufacturer and supplier of agricultural chemicals Nufarm Ltd
(ASX:NUF) has reported a 42.1 per cent fall in net profit to $79.9 million for the year to July 31.
Revenue fell 7 per cent to $2.68 billion, the company saying the result due to a very difficult second half.
However the company says it expects to see growth in group profitability in the 2010 financial year with an improved operating environment in Brazil, a more competitive position in glysophate and continued revenue and margin expansion across other product positions being the major contributors to that growth.
Nufarm also says it has entered into a heads of agreement with Sinochem in relation to a proposal for Sinochem to acquire all of the issued ordinary shares in Nufarm for $13 a share.
Nufarm declared a final dividend of 15 cents a share for the year to July 31 but says the acquisition price of $13 a share will not be reduced by the amount of this dividend.
The chemical maker says the heads of agreement allows it to work with Sinochem for a period ending December 3 2009 on an exclusive basis to negotiate a transaction implementation agreement.
Nufarm says if a transaction implementation agreement is executed, the Nufarm board intends to unanimously recommend the proposed acquisition.
Nufarm’s 2008 net profit was $137.9 million, down on the year before.
Top Telco Telstra Ltd (ASX:TLS) has announced that managing director of its Consumer Group, David Moffatt has tendered his resignation after almost a decade with the company.
Mr Moffatt joined Telstra as CFO and group managing director, finance and administration in 2001 and has been in the role of group managing director, Consumer since 2003.
Mr Moffatt says that with the mass market transformation, and the customer migration in particular, nearing completion, now is the right time for a new generation of leaders to be given the opportunity to take the business into its next phase of growth.
CEO David Thodey says Mr Moffatt has played a major role at Telstra in building a world-leading, fully integrated, consumer retail business.
Mr Moffatt will remain in the role for the next six months or until a suitable successor is in place.
Telstra recorded net profit of $4.073 billion in 2009 its best result in four years.
Miner and metals traded OM Holdings Ltd (ASX:OMH) says it has secured a $294 million deal to acquire a major stake in a South African manganese project which it says will help the company transform into one of the world’s largest independent manganese companies.
The company says it is to acquire a 49.9 per cent interest in the Tshipi Project from a group of five non-related co-investors in exchange for 139.9 OM Holdings shares valued at $245 million.
The company has also agreed to acquire a 20 per cent interest in a South African Black Economic Empowerment company which owns the remaining 50.1 per cent of the Tshipi Project for $49.2 million in cash.
OMH says it is seeking a secondary listing on The Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.
Chairman Mr Low Ngee Tong says the deal will potion OMH as one of the world’s leading globally integrated manganese companies.
Mr Tong says this transaction represents the first major step towards its objective of increasing OMH’s manganese ore resource base more than five-fold and at the same time begins the process of building a major steel feed materials business.
After posting a loss in 2006, OM Holdings pulled itself out of the red to post a profit in 2007 and 2008.
Clean green energy company Eden Energy Ltd (ASX:EDE) has entered into an agreement with major energy utility Origin Energy Ltd (ASX:ORG) for Origin to farm-in to Eden’s Cooper Basin Geothermal Licence No. 185 in South Australia.
The company says Origin will pay it $1 million cash and will bear the first $500,000 of expenditure on the licence to earn a 70 per cent interest.
Eden says both companies will then contribute proportionally to further expenditure, with Origin the operator of the project.
The company says it is actively exploring a variety of ways to further progress the funding of the exploration and development of all Eden’s geothermal interests in South Australia.
Eden says the farm-in by Origin provides a significant boost to Eden’s plans to develop its geothermal interests by enabling Eden to progress the development of the licence with a significant joint venture partner and still retain a strategic interest in the broader Cooper Basin geothermal licence area.
Eden Energy has posted losses in the last four years.
