Global miner BHP Billiton could look to divest the nitrogen and phosphates business of fertilizer maker Potash Corp if its $39 billion bid goes through, the Australian Financial Review reported on Monday.

The paper quoted an analyst who had taken part in a conference call last week with BHP chief commercial officer Alberto Calderon.

BHP said that 70 percent of the value is in the potash assets and that over time it would probably look to possibly divest the nitrogen and perhaps the phosphates business, the paper quoted Soleil Securities analyst Mark Gulley as saying in a note to clients after a conference call last week.

(Reporting by Ed Davies; Editing by James Regan)