RIYADH: SABIC Agri-Nutrients reported SR10.03 billion ($2.67 billion) net profit in 2022, registering 92 percent year-on-year growth, driven by higher average selling prices and sales volumes, according to a bourse filing. The company, however, noted in a filing to Tadawul that the profit was impacted by the increase in general and administrative expenses, as well as a rise in selling and distribution costs. The net profit of SABIC Agri-Nutrients after Zakat and tax in the fourth quarter of 2022, however, decreased by 22 percent to SR22.6 billion, against the same period of the previous year. While compared with the third quarter of 2022, the firm’s net profit in the fourth quarter decreased by 7 percent. This comes as shareholders’ equity, after minority interest, rose to SR19.89 billion as of Dec. 31, 2022, from SR15.55 billion in 2021. SABIC Agri-Nutrients, formerly known as Saudi Arabian Fertilizers Co., took over marketing its products from Saudi Basic Industries Corp. SABIC will disclose its financial results on Feb. 28 at 10.00 a.m. through a virtual press conference. Earlier, in a filing to the Saudi exchange, SABIC reported SR16.24 billion profit for the first nine months of 2022, compared to SR18.10 billion in the same period in 2021. In August 2022, SABIC Agri-Nutrients Co. signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund-owned Saudi Agricultural Livestock Investment Co. to study the possibility of collaboration in the field of food security. Through the investment plan, the company aims to establish projects related to the agricultural nutrients industry to support its growth strategy for fertilizers and nutrients. According to a bourse filing, the deal with the Public Investment Fund will set out a framework to address growing environmental challenges and ensure food security through joint investments. The agreement between SABIC Agri-Nutrients and SALIC is valid until February 2024. In May 2022, SABIC Agri-Nutrients Co.’s Chairman Abdulrahman Shamsaddin hinted that the company will continue exploring investment plans, both inside and outside Saudi Arabia.