Procrastination was prudence for Terra Industries

Terra-IndustriesTerra Industries' delay in saying "I do" proved to be a gold mine for its shareholders when the decision for selling itself to CF Industries fetched more than twice, what CF original planned for more than a year ago, while holding talks with rivals including Yara International.

CF's bid climbed from an original $2.1 billion in January 2009 to the $4.7 billion offer that Sioux City, Iowa-based Terra accepted yesterday and Yara decided not to raise its $4.1 billion bid and move out of the bidding process.

It was a battle in which CF Industries was both predator and prey. The $4.7 billion CF-Terra deal thwarted Agrium Inc's efforts to gulp down CF.

Although Agrium dropped its bid for CF, the Canadian fertilizer maker made it clear that it will seek fresh growth opportunities across the agricultural value chain - from supplying farmers to producing fertilizers, and other businesses in between.