Agrimoney.com | 1 March 2012
Trigon Agri took a step towards realising its ambition of becoming Europe's top milk producer by buying the biggest dairy farm in Estonia, fulfilling long-held ambitions of purchasing the struggling business.
The Black Sea farm operator, which on Tuesday said it was poised "to announce a number of new acquisitions by the end of May" in dairy, on Thursday unveiled the first, of the 4,160-hectare Vaatsa Agro business.
The deal adds Estonia's largest dairy farm by quota, at 13.9m litres of milk a year, to a Trigon portfolio which already includes the 3,400-hectare Kaiu dairy farm next door, and a 1,970-hectare site near St Petersburg in Russia.
Indeed, it progresses the group's plans to expand to 11,000, from 2,100, its milking cows over the next three-to-four years, a fear which chairman Joakim Helenius said on Tuesday "would make us the largest dairy producer in Europe, including Russia".
Singapore-based cocoa-to-flour group Olam International in January unveiled plans to turn a Russian milk producer, Rusmolco, with a 3,600-strong dairy herd into one with 20,000 head by 2017.
Troubled past
Trigon's acquisition realises long-standing ambitions to purchase Vaatsa Agro which, in adjoining the Kaiu farm, offers the potential "for substantial operational synergies", the group said.
Mr Helenius was a year ago said to be considering a deal to buy Vaatsa Agro, which has been struggling to pay back debts reported at E6m to Swedbank, running a loss of 140m Estonian kroons, equivalent to about E9m, in 2009.
Thursday's statement noted that Trigon had acquired "all claims" against the farm lodged by Swedbank, and Hanseatic Capital Estonia.
Vaatsa Agro comes with 4,160 hectares of land, of which 1,718 are in direct ownership, and a 3,386-strong dairy herd, of which 1,685 are milking cows.
Trigon shares, which are listed in Stockholm, closed down 0.6% at SKr8.00.
Trigon Agri took a step towards realising its ambition of becoming Europe's top milk producer by buying the biggest dairy farm in Estonia, fulfilling long-held ambitions of purchasing the struggling business.
The Black Sea farm operator, which on Tuesday said it was poised "to announce a number of new acquisitions by the end of May" in dairy, on Thursday unveiled the first, of the 4,160-hectare Vaatsa Agro business.
The deal adds Estonia's largest dairy farm by quota, at 13.9m litres of milk a year, to a Trigon portfolio which already includes the 3,400-hectare Kaiu dairy farm next door, and a 1,970-hectare site near St Petersburg in Russia.
Indeed, it progresses the group's plans to expand to 11,000, from 2,100, its milking cows over the next three-to-four years, a fear which chairman Joakim Helenius said on Tuesday "would make us the largest dairy producer in Europe, including Russia".
Singapore-based cocoa-to-flour group Olam International in January unveiled plans to turn a Russian milk producer, Rusmolco, with a 3,600-strong dairy herd into one with 20,000 head by 2017.
Troubled past
Trigon's acquisition realises long-standing ambitions to purchase Vaatsa Agro which, in adjoining the Kaiu farm, offers the potential "for substantial operational synergies", the group said.
Mr Helenius was a year ago said to be considering a deal to buy Vaatsa Agro, which has been struggling to pay back debts reported at E6m to Swedbank, running a loss of 140m Estonian kroons, equivalent to about E9m, in 2009.
Thursday's statement noted that Trigon had acquired "all claims" against the farm lodged by Swedbank, and Hanseatic Capital Estonia.
Vaatsa Agro comes with 4,160 hectares of land, of which 1,718 are in direct ownership, and a 3,386-strong dairy herd, of which 1,685 are milking cows.
Trigon shares, which are listed in Stockholm, closed down 0.6% at SKr8.00.
