Astarta to build soybean processing plant worth $35 m

Astarta, a large Ukrainian agro holding, plans to build a soybean processing plant in Poltava region with an installed crushing capacity of 700 tonnes of soybeans per day, or around 220,000 tonnes annually, and total CAPEX being $35 million, reads a company report issued on Tuesday.

"The long-term financing for the project will be provided by international financial institutions. The start of the plant's operations is scheduled for 2013," reads the report.

The report says that the project also includes the construction of an elevator with a designed capacity of 42,000 tonnes and storage facilities for finished goods.

Annual production capacity is up to 160,000 tonnes of high-protein toasted meal, 40,000 tonnes of soybean oil, and 9,000 tonnes of granulated husks. The plant will be more than 60% self-sufficient in soybeans, which are produced by the agricultural enterprises of the group, Astarta said.

The selected site for the plant provides the optimal conditions for raw materials acceptance, and the processing and shipment of produce, the company said.

"This project will extend the value chain, increase revenues, strengthen the business' diversification and mitigate currency risks due to export sales growth. An additional advantage is good synergy with the planned biogas production at Globyno sugar plant, and with the cattle farming segment of the group," reads the report, citing ASTARTA's CEO, Viktor Ivanchyk.

Astarta is a vertically integrated agriculture company. It has eight sugar plants in Khmelnytsky, Poltava and Kharkiv regions, which together have the capacity to process over 33,000 tonnes of sugar beet daily.

Its core business is the production of sugar, grain and sunflower seeds, as well as meat and milk. Its land holdings are 245,000 hectares in area.