Copersucar and Cargill to merge sugar trading activities

Sugar and ethanol trader Copersucar and Cargill have entered into an agreement to merge their global sugar trading activities into a new joint venture (JV), which will be based in Geneva, Switzerland.

The parties will have an equal holding in the JV, which will originate, commercialise and trade raw and white sugar.

The new company will have offices in Hong Kong, Sao Paulo, Miami, Delhi, Moscow, Jakarta, Shanghai, Bangkok and Dubai, in addition to representation offices elsewhere across the world.

It will integrate the capabilities of both companies to increase efficiency, quality and services in the sugar supply chain.

In addition, the JV will benefit from large-scale supply of Copersucar’s partner mills in Brazil, Thailand, Indian, Central American and Australian regions, as well as from both firms’ expertise in logistics management and access to Brazilian elevation terminals.

Copersucar chairman Luis Roberto Pogetti said that through the new company, Copersucar reinforces its strategy of achieving a global footprint in the sugar market.

"Copersucar also enhances its unique business model, based on large-scale supply, logistic capacity and the integration of all links of the chain, from the producers to the customers," Pogetti added.

Cargill corporate vice president Olivier Kerr said, "We believe that the strong analytical capabilities of our trading teams combined with the global footprint of this new joint venture, will offer our customers a distinct understanding of the global market."

Ivo Sarjanovic, Cargill’s sugar business lead, will assume the role of CEO, while Soren Hoed Jensen, Copersucar’s sugar and ethanol sales executive director will become COO of the JV.

The JV is subject to regulatory approval, which is expected to be received in the second half of 2014.

The transaction excludes ethanol businesses and fixed assets owned by Cargill and Copersucar.

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Image: The new sugar trading firm will be based in Geneva, Switzerland. Photo courtesy of Grant Cochrane at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.