Both transactions — subject to approval of the responsible antitrust authorities — will be completed by Jan. 1, 2013. The purchase price for 100% of the shares of Cefetra and for 60% of the shares of Bohnhorst amounts to €125 million and €36 million, respectively.
Helmut Bohnhorst Jr., who will continue as the company's managing director, will retain 40% of Bohnhorst's shares.
Following these acquisitions, BayWa's total traded grain volume increases to 28 million tonnes and its turnover increases at least to €15 billion.
"BayWa not only strengthens its position as an important European grain trader, but also enforces its global footprint in the agricultural commodities space,” said BayWa Chief Executive Officer Klaus Josef Lutz. BayWa is continuing its strategy to become more prominent in the international market for agricultural trading. "With these acquisitions we have reached a new milestone in further developing one of our core divisions internationally.”
The acquisitions also address recent market developments, as BayWa perceives a consolidation within the grain trading sector. Increased competition, mainly triggered by a higher demand from Asia and Africa and the search for access to supply in South America and Eastern Europe, has weighted the importance of scale in the trading space.
Cefetra B.V., headquartered in Rotterdam, will be acquired from ForFarmers Group B.V and the agricultural cooperatives Agrifirm Group B.V. and AgruniekRijnvallei B.V. The company trades grain on a global scale and is a leader in the European supply market for the compound feed sector in terms of soy, grain and sunflower and rapeseed meals. The company has storage and port sites throughout Europe, as well as a sourcing network in Poland.
The Bohnhorst group's core business is agricultural trading with extensive sourcing capacities, mainly in Eastern Germany. Furthermore, it owns sites at deep-sea ports along the Baltic Sea coast.
"Besides our own locations, we will now have direct access to the most important German waterways as well as the Baltic Sea and consequently, to the developing markets in Eastern Europe. This is a significant advantage for the sourcing and marketing of grains,” said Lutz. "Due to excellent management and employee performance, Bohnhorst has an excellent market position and is extremely successful.”
