IMK Agro Holding is preparing for the spring sowing campaign of 2023, during which it plans to sow all 100% of its land bank (120 thousand hectares), for which it is now buying all the necessary materials and repairing agricultural equipment.
As the group reported at the Warsaw Stock Exchange on Thursday, it sowed winter wheat in the fall of 2022 on about 33,000 hectares, an increase of 80% over previous years, with all crops coming up and in good condition.
IMC specified that in 2022 it harvested 121.9 thousand tons of wheat with a yield of 6.7 tons/ha, and 64.2 thousand tons of sunflower with a yield of 3.4 tons/ha.
“Maize, IMC’s main crop, continues to be harvested, with 42% of the company’s land bank in 2022. As of February 1, 2023, 70% of the area under corn has already been harvested. Corn yield is 10.7 tons/ha (10.6 tons/ha in 2021),” stressed the holding in its report.
At the same time, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the blockade of sea export routes led to a 35% reduction of IMC crop sales in 2022 to 483 thousand tons from 743 thousand tons in 2021.
IMC specified that in the first half of 2022 it was forced to develop alternative export routes through the western borders of Ukraine, but they could not fully compensate the volume of exports through the Ukrainian Black Sea ports. As a consequence, in May-July 2022, the holding exported an average of 14 thousand tons of crops per month compared to 70 thousand tons in the prewar period.
After signing Istanbul Grain Agreement in August, 2022 and partial unblocking of the Black Sea export, the holding increased its crops export almost to pre-war level – in December, 2022 IMC shipped to foreign markets about 66 thousand tons of crops.
IMC specializes in the cultivation of grain and oilseeds and the production of milk in Ukraine. It cultivates about 123,300 hectares of land in Poltava, Chernigov and Sumy regions. It has a storage capacity of 554 thsd. tons of grains and oilseeds.
By the end of 2021, IMC increased its net profit by 2.5 times compared to 2020 – up to $78.71 million, EBITDA – by 53%, to $110.35 million, revenues – by 12.6%, to $181.69 million.
