Omnia takeover signals major shift in mining, agriculture

This week’s R22bn takeover bid for Omnia, by India’s Solar SA Investments, if approved, will see the group exit the JSE after nearly 50 years on Africa’s largest bourse.

Solar this week dangled a multibillion-rand carrot before Omnia shareholders in a bid to take control of the 73-year-old legacy of a group that diversified from a fertiliser into a chemicals and explosives maker for the mining industry.

Founded in 1953, Omnia has morphed into a R10bn company with a presence in 23 countries, its main pillars being agriculture and mining through BME, its bulk explosives division, which owns the largest nitrate facility in the region.

Omnia, alongside AECI , the 100-year-old chemicals group, are the only listed explosives and fertiliser companies in South Africa.

Record metal prices after the war in Ukraine have been a major tailwind for the group, which posted an R1.6bn profit in 2025.

The stock at R115 a share marks a significant turnaround since 2019, when it traded under R15 a share. Under CEO Seelan Gobalsamy . who was appointed in 2019, the group undertook a restructuring of assets and the selling of struggling assets.

Solar SA, a Solar Industries subsidiary, is proposing to pay R135 a share, representing a premium to Omnia’s share price at market close on September 10.

Gobalsamy told journalists that the takeover bid, if approved by shareholders, speeds up growth and highlights Solar’s intention to invest in Omnia for the long term.

“I don’t think Solar is doing something to make a quick buck, if I can call it that. Solar is investing in Omnia for the long term,” he said.

Despite the acquisition, Omnia remains committed to South African customers, Gobalsamy said.

“I see no reason why Solar would not be committed to that. Certainly Omnia is committed to that, and the combination is committed to that. Solar is seeing this as a big investment on the African continent, and they’re seeing this as a big part of a global expansion.”

Stephan Erasmus, an investment analyst at Anchor Capital, said the fertiliser industry is volatile and driven by the weather.

South Africa’s maize crop averaged about 8.9-million tonnes during the 2015 and 2016 droughts, and the latest estimate this season is a record 17.4-million tonnes, with fertiliser around 35% of a maize farmer’s input costs.

“What’s interesting about Omnia is that its Sasolburg plants are built around optionality. Ammonia comes either from Secunda or is imported through Richards Bay, and the nitrophosphate process uses locally sourced phosphate rather than imported,“ Erasmus said.