Urea plant faces forced closure over gas supply
One of New Zealand’s largest fertiliser plants could be forced to shut down for four months as uncertainty looms over gas supply.
If approved by the Commerce Commission, the deal will form an integrated animal feed business unit with three well-known and complementary brands – SealesWinslow, NRM and McMillan.
Earlier this year, Ballance and Farmlands agreed to work together to assess the advantages of Farmlands purchasing SealesWinslow. The outcome was that bringing together the feed assets and expertise of these two farmer-owned New Zealand co-operatives would secure long-term benefits for shareholders, customers, and stakeholders.
“SealesWinslow is a recognised leader in animal nutrition, built on a similar ethos to Farmlands. It has a long history, including mergers and growth, aimed at providing the best products and best value to Kiwi farmers,” says Farmlands chief executive Tanya Houghton. “We’re excited about the prospect of buying SealesWinslow and supporting it to be an important part of our overall nutrition business.”
Houghton says the agreement will broaden Farmlands' manufacturing footprint into the North Island and complements their existing South Island infrastructure, resulting in a nationwide animal nutrition solution.
“Farmlands exists to create better outcomes for New Zealand farmer customers and shareholders. In this instance, our focus is specifically around animal nutrition, which is such an important on-farm input, so it’s an area we are very focused on.”
The purchase of SealesWinslow also ensures that critical animal feed assets stay in New Zealand co-operative ownership, maintaining local control of this part of the supply chain.
The announcement follows Farmlands’ last major partnership decision in 2022 which established Fern Energy by combining Farmlands’ fuel business with Southfuels. Fern Energy is now the largest rural fuel provider in New Zealand.
Before the sale can proceed, it must be approved by the Commerce Commission. It is anticipated that this regulatory process will be complete early in 2024. Ballance and Farmlands says they will work closely with the Commerce Commission to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to meet regulatory approval requirements.
Until the proposed ownership change is approved, SealesWinslow will continue to operate as it does currently.
