Deepak Fertiliser has offloaded 1.21 per cent stake in the company to Zuari Group for Rs 58.02 crore.

With the sale of these shares, the Pune-based company has reduced its stake in Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilisers Ltd (MCFL) to 5.22 per cent from 31.25 per cent in December last year.

In a filing to the BSE, MCFL said Deepak Fertilisers’ arm SCM Solifert has tendered MCFL’s 14,40,097 shares in an open offer made by Zuari Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd.

It also said that shares representing 1.21 per cent in MCFL have been sold for Rs 58.02 crore.

Deepak Fertilisers was competing with the Kolkata-based industrialist Saroj Poddar-led Zuari Group for taking control of MCFL, since July 2013. In the process, it had acquired over 31 per cent stake in MCFL.

However, Deepak Fertilisers, in a surprise move, started selling the shares of MCFL from December last year, signalling its exit from the UB Group firm.

Meanwhile, Zuari Group had launched its open offer on April 20 to acquire additional 36.56 per cent stake in MCFL for nearly Rs 400 crore.

Earlier this week, Zuari group had informed that it has acquired additional 36.56 per cent stake through open offer and has become a majority shareholder of MCFL with a total stake of 53.03 per cent.

Zuari had 16.47 per cent stake in MCFL as on March 31, 2015, while the promoter UB group has 21.97 per cent stake in the fertiliser firm.