Top of Anglo American’s mind in bidding for London-listed Sirius Minerals is the need for greater crop yield from less farmland. Anglo sees an opportunity to achieve this by turning Sirius’s polyhalite project, in the UK, to positive account and then selling the multinutrient fertiliser material to countries like Brazil, China and the US. Sirius has not been able to pull it off singly and Anglo is angling to spend only $500-million to acquire a project in which well over $1-billion has already been invested. If the deal goes through, Anglo will find itself with a high-grade, long-life, quick-return asset acquired for a song. An earnings margin of 50%-plus is on the cards and payback could begin as early as next year.