February 24, 2016
Cargill, MV Cargo to build port terminal in Ukraine
Cargill and MV Cargo have formalised their intention to construct a grain terminal in Yuzhni, Ukraine, by signing a Share Purchase Agreement.
MV Cargo will build the facility which involves an investment of around US$100 million.
The pact was signed in the presence of Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Prime Minister of Ukraine; Geoffrey Pyatt, US Ambassador to Ukraine; Andriy Pivovarskiy, Minister of Infrastructure; Olexi Pavlenko, Minister of Agriculture; and other senior Ukrainian government officials.
The agreement marks a significant milestone in the project and follows the memorandum of cooperation between Cargill and MV Cargo - along with Ukraine's Sea Ports Authority (USPA) - on August 13 last year.
The port authority agreed to dredge the water area adjacent to the future grain terminal down to 16 meters. This will enable the new terminal to handle large vessels with a deadweight of up to 100,000 tonnes.
"We are delighted to sign this agreement, as we have been working towards this moment with our partners MV Cargo and the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority for quite some time," said Andreas Rickmers, head of Cargill's grains and oilseeds business in Europe.
"Through this investment Ukraine's port infrastructure will expand and provide greater efficiencies to connect Ukraine's surplus agricultural crops with the parts of the world demanding more food," Rickmers added. "This new port will benefit Ukrainian farmers, the overall economy and global food security. It will add to our footprint of port facilities in the Black Sea region and confirms our intention to keep investing in Ukraine's agricultural sector."
"This project is of key importance for Ukraine to sustain its leading position among grain exporting countries, as this deep-water terminal will allow us to process vessels of high tonnage, delivering Ukrainian grain to markets all over the world," Andrey Stanvnitser, who represents MV Cargo, commented. "We expect the project to generate over UAH300 million (US$11.02 million) in tax payments annually and create employment for around 350 people."
The construction of the terminal will begin on February 27 and is expected to be completed by the spring of 2018.