AAK to acquire Dutch vegetable oil refinery

AAK is acquiring Dutch firm MaasRefinery, which specialises in toll refining of vegetable oil and fat for the food industry.

Financial details of the deal have not been divulged.

With this acquisition, AAK intends to increase its production capacity, support manufacturing facilities and enable continued growth.

AAK president and CEO Johan Westman said: “We have seen strong growth within our European business over the past years, and this investment will give us the additional capacity and secure support for continued growth.”

Founded in 2009, MaasRefinery is located next to a deep-sea terminal in Rotterdam. The refinery has a capacity of nearly 40,000mt, as well as room for expansion.

The Dutch facility features the latest technology, with processes that maximise energy efficiency and minimise oil losses.

With a workforce of 20 full-time employees, the facility generated revenue of SEK50m ($53m) in 2018.

AAK Europe president Jan Lenferink said: “MaasRefinery is a very well-managed company that focuses on conventional, as well as organic oils and fats, the latter being a key focus area for AAK.”

Completion of the deal is subject to approval from local authorities and is expected to be finalised during the first quarter of 2019.

In October 2018, AAK opened a customer innovation centre in Singapore to help expand its capabilities in the South East Asian market.

The centre is located at Biopolis, an integrated research and development complex that houses pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies’ research laboratories and public sector research institutes.