Farms that are part of the KSG Agro agricultural holding have started spring sowing by introducing innovations. This was reported by the company’s press service with reference to Volodymyr Kalilei, Head of the crop production division of the agricultural holding.
The farms that are part of the KSG Agro agricultural holding have started spring sowing using modern innovative technologies. In terms of crops, the sown areas are as follows:
– winter wheat – about 7 hectares
– sunflower – about 5 hectares
– spring barley – up to 2 hectares
– as well as certain areas of corn.
According to Volodymyr Kalilei, PhD in Agriculture, Head of Crop Production Division of the agricultural holding, weather conditions are favorable for a successful sowing campaign as there is enough moisture for today, so the seeds are getting into sufficiently moist soil. However, last year’s drought did not pass by the agribusiness, so unfortunately, moisture is rapidly disappearing from the soil. For this reason, the agroholding plans to conduct the sowing campaign as soon as possible. The company is introducing innovative technologies to ensure efficient use of the products and reduce the pesticide burden on the plant and the environment.
The company uses liquid complex fertilizers UAN (urea-ammonia mixture) with sulfur and FFRM with the addition of biologically active product Roundup Extreme when sowing sunflower, and nitrogen fixers (Azotohelp) and urea during the growing season when cultivating winter wheat.
In addition, organic-biological systems of sunflower and corn cultivation are being implemented using a line of highly effective products manufactured by BTU, a Ukrainian biotechnology company that produces microbial and enzyme products for plant nutrition and protection, preservation and restoration of soil fertility, control of pathogens and reduction of their populations, intensive development of the plant root system in symbiosis with the beneficial biotic component of the soil, moisture accumulation and retention. The goal is to achieve a biogeocenosis as close to natural as possible, which in turn will lead to a reduction in the pesticide load on the soil and plant, a reduction in mineral fertilizer application by up to 30%, and an increase in the profitability of crop production. The products used include a phosphorus-potassium mobilizer – Groundfix, a nitrogen fixer – Azotohelp, a soil remover – Ecostern, biofungicides Phytohelp and Mycohelp, a root system development intensifier, Mycofriend, which contain bacterial cells and vitamins, phytohormones, amino acids and other physiologically active substances.
The campaign uses three John Deere 8295 tractors and three DB55 precision seeders. During the 2025 sowing season, KSG Agro is one of the first companies in the region to apply liquid fertilizers to the soil with a Güstrower GFI 6-4 3000L injector using CULTAN technology with the help of Agrokhim LTD LLC, Dnipro. This innovative technology allows to obtain long-term controlled assimilation by crops without loss of active ingredients of liquid fertilizers by applying them to the root zone of plants. 100% uniformity of mineral fertilizers distribution is achieved by puncturing the soil with spokes (needles) of the injector wheels to a depth of 8-10 cm. Regardless of the working width, all wheels follow the relief of the field, which ensures uniform distribution of nitrogen fertilizers to the required depth over the entire field area. In areas of insufficient moisture, this equipment is a godsend, allowing the use of limited water resources for the development of cultivated plants in full.
“The use of innovative technologies allows Ukrainian farmers to increase yields and thus increase the efficiency of agricultural work. This is especially important in the context of ensuring the country’s food security during a large-scale war,” emphasized Sergiy Kasyanov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of KSG Agro.
In 2024, KSG Agro received $3.662 million in operating profit against a $1.615 million loss a year earlier, according to the agricultural holding’s report on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
According to the report, KSG Agro’s revenue from sales in 2024 increased by 17.6% to $22.103 million from $18.786 million.
“By continuing to implement the development strategy of a vertically integrated holding, we have achieved improved financial performance in two of our strategically important business areas – crop production and pig production. The main factor behind the positive dynamics was the increase in the efficiency of the pig business in 2024 by updating the herd with sows of modern efficient genetics. As confirmed by a series of tests we conducted in early 2023, the productivity of the purchased sows is quite high not only in terms of the number of litters and farrowing weight, but also in terms of pork quality,” said Sergiy Kasyanov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of KSG Agro.
According to him, based on the tests conducted, 1.3 thousand heads of the identified low-productive sows in the herd were replaced with purchased more efficient ones during the year. This allowed the holding to produce high quality piglets and ensure high dynamics of the pig breeding business.
Kasyanov added that the main drivers of KSG Agro’s further development, including in 2025, will be increasing the efficiency of crop production and increasing the productivity of the pig herd by continuing to rejuvenate the pig population.
KSG Agro, a vertically integrated holding company, is engaged in pig production, as well as the production, storage, processing and sale of grains and oilseeds. Its land bank in Dnipropetrovska and Khersonska oblasts is about 21 thousand hectares.
According to the agricultural holding, it is one of the top five pork producers in Ukraine. In 2023, it launched a “network-centric” strategy, which will shift from developing a large location to a number of smaller pig farms located in different regions of Ukraine.
In the first quarter of 2024, KSG Agro decreased its net profit by 37% to $0.96 million on a 2% decrease in revenue to $5.02 million. Its EBITDA decreased by 2% to $1.83 million.
KSG Agro has begun to upgrade the number of pigs at its pig farm in the Dnipropetrovs’k region by purchasing 500 sows of Danish genetics, the agricultural holding’s press service reports.
The agroholding noted that to update the number of pigs, 500 purebred pedigree sows of Danish Pig Genetics genetics were purchased from the supplier Breeders of Denmark A/S (Denmark). They are expected to be delivered to the pig farm in May. The volume of investments in the pig breeding program amounted to several hundred thousand euros (the specific amount was not disclosed).
The agricultural holding estimates that with the help of 500 purebred sows, KSG Agro will be able to produce 4000 F-1 hybrid sows by 2025. They are considered the most stable, have high reproductive efficiency and are able to produce high-quality piglets that will later turn into valuable fattening animals.
“In the difficult conditions of livestock business development during the war, its efficiency is of utmost importance, which can be increased by rejuvenating the herd. That is why this year we are implementing a large-scale program to renew the pig population with products from leading international producers of purebred pig genetics, including the Danish Breeders of Denmark A/S. In general, by 2025, we plan to increase the efficiency of pig breeding at our pig farm by at least 15%,” explained Sergiy Kasyanov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of KSG Agro.
KSG Agro, a vertically integrated holding company, is engaged in pig production, as well as the production, storage, processing and sale of grains and oilseeds. Its land bank in Dnipropetrovska and Khersonska oblasts is about 21 thousand hectares.
According to the agricultural holding, it is one of the top five pork producers in Ukraine. In 2023, it launched a “network-centric” strategy, which will shift from developing a large location to a number of smaller pig farms located in different regions of Ukraine.
In the first quarter of 2024, KSG Agro agricultural holding decreased its net profit by 37% to $0.96 million on a 2% decrease in revenue to $5.02 million. Its EBITDA decreased by 2% to $1.83 million.
The Board of Directors of the Ukrainian agricultural holding KSG Agro has sold 700 thousand shares owned by the company to a new partner in accordance with the company’s development strategy and in order to increase the participation of new investors in new projects.
“KSG Agro still owns 800 thousand shares in the company,” the agricultural holding said in a statement on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE).
The name of the new partner was not disclosed.
Taking into account the total number of shares, it means the sale of 4.66% and retention of 5.33% of the company’s shares.
On Thursday, KSG Agro’s share price on the WSE decreased by 0.25% to PLN4.07 per share ($1.05 at the current exchange rate), which corresponds to a capitalization of PLN60.53 million ($15.62 million).
As reported, KSG Agro in February this year announced the purchase of 10% of its own shares from its major shareholder Olbis Investments Ltd, Sergey Kasyanov, to diversify and expand its investment activities in the EU markets. Olbis Investments’ stake is now 47.97%.
In January-September 2024, KSG Agro agricultural holding generated $16.8 million in revenue, up 41% year-on-year. Its EBITDA for the three quarters of last year decreased by 4% to $4.38 million, and its net loss amounted to $0.8 million against a net profit of $1.34 million for the same period in 2023.
This year, KSG Agro will build an energy complex in Dnipro region that will include a solar power plant, an energy storage system, and a gas cogeneration unit, the company’s press service reports.
“It is expected that the project of the energy complex will be implemented according to the zero investment concept proposed by EnergyInvest HUB. This means that KSG Agro will not spend significant equity capital on the construction of a solar station: the main investments will be made by external financial partners,” the agricultural holding said.
According to the company, thanks to this model, the agricultural holding will receive cheaper electricity and heat without the need for capital investment in the project.
According to the report, the capacity of the solar station will be 0.5 MW. A 1 MWh energy storage system will ensure the accumulation of excess solar generation during the day, and a 0.8 MW gas plant will generate the necessary energy in the evening and at night or work as a backup. The combined system will be centrally managed through an EMS (Energy Management System).
The construction of the complex is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2025.
The agricultural holding is convinced that the energy complex built according to this scheme will provide the company with the necessary margin of safety and predictability. Increasing the level of energy autonomy will help prevent the negative consequences associated with power outages.
An important aspect of energy independence is the ability to avoid a significant rise in electricity prices, which significantly affects the growth of agricultural production costs, KSG Agro explains. The economic effect of the construction of the energy complex is expected to allow it to reduce the price of electricity consumed by about 20% of the market price.
“The difficult situation in the Ukrainian energy market leads not only to interruptions in electricity supply but also to its rise in price, which significantly affects the growth of agricultural production costs. That is why financing renewable energy sources, in particular solar energy, is very important for farmers,” explained Sergiy Kasyanov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the agricultural holding.
He noted that the construction of an energy complex with a solar power plant provides significant benefits in several business dimensions at once: energy autonomy, energy efficiency, increased profitability and greening of agricultural production.
“Add to this the fact that the cost of solar power plants has been decreasing in recent years, and their commissioning leads to minimal interference with the company’s power grid. In addition, such a station allows us to connect more load than the company’s usual load, which actually stabilizes the grid voltage,” Kasyanov said.
KSG Agro started implementing alternative power supply projects in the spring of 2022. So far, about 10 generators with a capacity of 100 to 250 kW each and a total capacity of 1.5 MW have been installed in its farms and headquarters. KSG Agro has also provided the local community with a generator, as its water supply system supplies water to both the community and the agricultural holding’s pig farm.
KSG Agro is a vertically integrated holding company engaged in pig farming, as well as the production, storage, processing and sale of grains and oilseeds. Its land bank in Dnipropetrovska and Khersonska oblasts is about 21 thousand hectares.
According to the agricultural holding, it is one of the top five pork producers in Ukraine. In 2023, it launched a “network-centric” strategy, which will shift from developing a large location to a number of smaller pig farms located in different regions of Ukraine.
In January-September 2023, KSG Agro received $1,336 million in net profit, which is almost 14 times more than in the same period in 2022. Its EBITDA for the three quarters increased by 67% to $4.5 million, and its profit from sales increased by 16% to $11.9 million.
In the first quarter of 2024, it decreased net profit by 37% to $0.96 million on a 2% decrease in revenue to $5.02 million. Its EBITDA decreased by 2% to $1.83 million.
Agroholding KSG Agro has bought back 10% of its shares from its major shareholder Olbis Investments Ltd, the company’s press service reports.
“The purpose of this step is to increase the holding’s liquidity, which will allow KSG Agro to diversify and expand its investment activities in the EU markets,” the agricultural holding explained.
KSG Agro noted that they want to place special emphasis on investments in biofertilizers. As part of the company’s long-term strategy to strengthen its financial stability, it is also considering real estate investments.
The first step in implementing this strategy is to strengthen the company’s financial position and liquidity by acquiring 1.5 million shares from its major shareholder, Olbis Investments Ltd. Previously, Olbis Investments Ltd S.A. owned 64.62% of the holding’s share capital, and 35.17% were in free float.
KSG Agro, a vertically integrated holding company, is engaged in pig breeding, as well as production, storage, processing and sale of grains and oilseeds. Its land bank in Dnipropetrovska and Khersonska oblasts is about 21 thousand hectares.
According to the agricultural holding, it is one of the top 5 pork producers in Ukraine. In 2023, it launched a “network-centric” strategy, which will move from developing a large location to a number of smaller pig farms located in different regions of Ukraine.
In January-September 2023, KSG Agro received $1,336 million in net profit, which is almost 14 times more than in the same period in 2022. Its EBITDA for the three quarters of this year increased by 67% to $4.5 million, and its profit from sales increased by 16% to $11.9 million.
In January-March 2024, KSG Agro agricultural holding reduced its net profit by 37% to $0.96 million, while revenue decreased by 2% to $5.02 million. Its EBITDA decreased by 2% to $1.83 million.
