Yara, the Norwegian chemical and fertilizer group, has agreed to purchase Dureal, Univar's European AdBlue business. The deal was signed on Friday 30 November. The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed. The purchase is subject to approval by the relevant competition authorities. The transaction is likely to see the greatest scrutiny in Germany, the largest AdBlue market.

The sale follows the purchase of Univar by CVC Capital Partners earlier in 2007, who apparently insisted on the divestment. Dureal's business model relied on production of AdBlue using urea purchased from external suppliers at prices related to the international market. International urea prices have recently reached record highs, exceeding US$400 per tonne in early December 2007 (basis FOB Black Sea).

It is unclear how Yara plans to integrate the business, but the strength of its Air1 brand would make it likely that Dureal will be absorbed into Air1. We estimate that Yara's share of the European AdBlue market will exceed 40% once Dureal’s business is included.

Univar said in a statement, "The decision to sell its Dureal business assets is part of a larger strategic decision by Univar to focus on its core industrial chemical distribution business"