Business news from Ukraine

Business news from Ukraine

KSG Agro has bought 500 sows of Danish Pig Genetics

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.

KSG Agro sold 700 thousand shares to new partner

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.

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KSG Agro to build energy complex in Dnipropetrovs’k region

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.

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KSG Agro buys 10% of its own shares to expand investments in EU

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.

KSG Agro will renew its pig population by more than 3.5 thousand sows in 2025

In 2025, KSG Agro will renew the pig population at its pig farm in Dnipro region by more than 3.5 thousand sows, with total investments in pig rejuvenation exceeding EUR1 million, the company’s press service reports.

“Rejuvenation of the pig population by replenishing sows is very important for us, as it allows us to significantly improve the quality characteristics of the herd. As a result, we will get better piglet health and improved taste characteristics of pork. In general, we expect to increase the efficiency of pig production by 15%,” explained Sergiy Kasyanov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of KSG Agro.

The process of reviewing proposals from international producers of various purebred pig genetics is currently underway, from which the most optimal parameters for the holding’s herd will be selected.

KSG Agro added that the total number of pigs in the holding is currently more than 60 thousand.

The vertically integrated KSG Agro holding 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 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.

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KSG Agro reduced its net profit by 37%

In the first quarter of 2024, KSG Agro agricultural holding reduced its net profit by 37% to $0.96 million, while revenue decreased by 2% to $5.02 million, according to the company’s report on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

“As in the previous year, the Group used more of its own grain for feed production rather than purchasing it (to reduce dependence on external suppliers of feed components in wartime). In 2024, the Group continues to export grain,” the document says.

According to it, due to a 10-fold increase in the benefits of biological transformation this year (up to $1.06 million), gross profit increased by 10% to $2.26 million, operating profit by 5% to $1.61 million, while EBITDA decreased by 2% to $1.83 million.

It is specified that the higher profit last year was due to the sale of a subsidiary for $0.76 million.

According to the report, KSG Agro managed to slightly reduce its net debt in the first quarter of this year to $15.06 million from $15.63 million due to a reduction in bank loans to $15.17 million from $15.84 million. The agricultural holding’s free cash flows at the end of March amounted to $0.11 million compared to $0.21 million at the beginning of the year.

During January-March 2024, the key operating subsidiary KSG Dnipro issued $5 million of C and D series bonds with a coupon rate of 7% per annum and maturity in August and October 2025, respectively, of which it placed $1.35 million of C series bonds.

As noted, the sowing campaign is proceeding according to plan, without significant interruptions due to military operations. As of the date of the report, the group sowed sunflower on an area of 7.7 thousand hectares, wheat on 2.2 thousand hectares and rapeseed on 1.43 thousand hectares.

According to the report, KSG Agro, a vertically integrated holding company, is one of the top 5 pork producers in Ukraine. It is also engaged in the production, storage, processing, and sale of grains and oilseeds. Its land bank is about 21 thousand hectares in the Dnipro and Kherson regions.

In 2023, KSG Agro reduced its net loss by 30.9% to $1.16 million, while revenue increased by 13.8% to $18.79 million.

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