Potash Believes Offer 'Grossly Inadequate' (POT)

Potash POT is having a conference call this morning to discuss the offer that BHP Billiton BHP made this morning for the company. It offered $130 per share for the potash producer. In the conference call, CEO Bill Doyle commented, "Global demand for food is steadily increasing, creating an attractive operating environment for the entire fertilizer industry and, with our premier position, PotashCorp is uniquely poised to benefit. We believe our Board and management team are successfully executing our business plan and producing strong results. With our unmatched asset base and proven strategies, we believe we are well positioned to exceed the expectations of customers around the world and deliver compelling value to our shareholders." "The PotashCorp Board of Directors unanimously believes that the BHP Billiton proposal substantially undervalues PotashCorp and fails to reflect both the value of our premier position in a strategically vital industry and our unparalleled future growth prospects," said PotashCorp Chairman Dallas J. Howe. "After careful consideration, and in the interest of transparency, our Board determined to proactively disclose BHP Billiton’s unsolicited, non-binding proposal to our shareholders. We believe it is critical for our shareholders to be aware of this aggressive attempt to acquire their company for significantly less than its intrinsic value. The fertilizer industry is emerging from the recent global economic downturn, and we feel strongly that PotashCorp shareholders should benefit from the current and potential value of the Company. We believe the BHP Billiton proposal is an opportunistic effort to transfer that value to its own shareholders." To read Potash's response to BHP, visit the company website. Shares of Potash are up this morning at $144.75, much higher than the $130 offer it received this morning.