German agri-chemical giant BASF has signed an agreement to acquire Bayer's additional seeds and crop protection businesses and asset.
The expanded scope includes Bayer’s entire vegetable seeds business, seed treatment products, the R&D platform for hybrid wheat and the digital farming platform xarvioTM.
The transaction also includes Bayer’s oilseed rape business in Australia, certain glyphosate-based herbicides in Europe, the canola-quality juncea research and certain non-selective herbicide and nematicide research projects.
The all-cash purchase price for the additional businesses and assets BASF agreed to acquire is €1.7 billion, subject to certain adjustments at closing. For the full year 2017, sales of these businesses amounted to around €745 million.
This purchase is in addition to the agreement BASF and Bayer signed on October 13, 2017. These businesses generated sales of €1.5 billion in 2017. The purchase price for this prior transaction is €5.9 billion, subject to certain adjustments at closing.
Dr. Kurt Bock, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE, said: “With this acquisition, BASF will become an even better partner for farmers by strengthening our crop protection portfolio and entering the seeds business in key agricultural markets. Through the expanded scope, we are accelerating and broadening the basis for growth across all regions.”
All transactions remain subject to the closing of Bayer’s acquisition of Monsanto, expected in the second quarter of 2018.
