Astarta IV

completed

The proposed investment will support Astarta (the company), a leading agriculture producer and processor in Ukraine, by providing a long-term corporate loan to finance the company’s 2017-2019 capital expansion programs. This program aims to improve resource efficiency at the company’s processing facilities through the implementation of Best Available Technology (BAT) that is technology for limiting pollutant discharges; and at improving farming and trading of grains and oilseeds through financing of farming equipment and storage facilities.     Astarta is one of the leading primary agricultural commodity producers and processors in Ukraine. Based on 2016 results, they are the largest Ukrainian producer of sugar and milk with a total output of 505,000 tons of sugar, 106,000 tons of milk, 158,000 tons of soybean products; and, 910,000 tons of cereals and oilseeds.  Key Astarta’s operations comprise the following: Crop production: Astarta currently has 250,000 ha of land under management. Astarta has a diversified crop portfolio including soy (26%), corn (18%), sugar beet (14%), wheat (18%), sunflower (10%). Sugar production: the company currently operates nine (9) sugar mills with about 43,000 tons per day (tpd) sugar beets processing capacity.     Astarta sells sugar to retail chains, beverage, confectionary and other food manufacturing companies, and to traders. Approximately 80% is sold to large industrial customers.    Astarta is one of the biggest producers of milk in Ukraine. Its beef and milk bovine headcount is, 31,000 and 15,600, respectively.  In December 2013, Astarta commissioned a soybean processing plant and biogas production plant in Globino. In 2015 the plant processed 197,000 tons of soybeans. The biogas plant produced 9.5 million cubic meters of biogas in 2016.