
Mallala is one of five GrainFlow sites that was expected to transfer into the Viterra network. Following a notification given to the ACCC last month, it will now stay in Cargill’s hands. Photo: GrainFlow
VITERRA’S plan to purchase Cargill’s South Australian grain sites has been withdrawn, averting a further concentration of the bulk-hander’s might in the wider Adelaide port zone and on Yorke Peninsula.
Neither Cargill nor Viterra have revealed why the proposed deal has been shelved, but industry speculation points to the proposed deal being unlikely to gain regulatory approval from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
The proposal would have seen Viterra gain control of all four of Cargill’s SA GrainFlow sites, located at Maitland on Yorke Peninsula, Crystal Brook in the Mid North, Mallala on the Adelaide Plains, and Pinnaroo in the Murray-Mallee.
It would also have transferred ownership of Cargill’s mobile ship loader at Port Adelaide, where Viterra already has two export terminals, plus the GrainFlow site at Dimboola in western Victoria.
Called off last month
Cargill and Viterra announced the shelving of the deal on December 16.
“Today, Viterra and Cargill have notified the [ACCC] that we have consulted in relation to the proposed acquisition for Viterra to acquire the South Australian GrainFlow sites and ship loader and the Dimboola site and have determined we will withdraw the application for review,” Viterra announced to its customers.
In SA, Viterra already has around 50 up-country sites, plus export terminals on the Eyre and Yorke peninsulas, as well as two sites in western Victoria.
Grain Producers South Australia chief executive officer Brad Perry said he was informed by Viterra that, in agreeance with Cargill, it had withdrawn its application to the ACCC for approval of the deal.
“GPSA participated in the ACCC’s public consultation on the proposed sale and outlined some of the concerns grain producers had raised with us, particularly in relation to potential competition impacts and current condition of the infrastructure at GrainFlow sites,” Mr Perry said in a statement.
“We are yet to receive any update from the ACCC on whether it will still publish a determination, and Viterra and Cargill haven’t provided us with any further details on the reasoning behind the withdrawal.”
An ACCC spokesperson today stated that Viterra advised it on December 13 that it would not proceed with the proposed acquisition, and withdrew its application for review.
“The ACCC did not conclude its merger review before it was withdrawn by the parties, so there was no determination or decision,” the spokesperson said.
The ACCC website references the long-term agreement between Viterra Operations and Cargill which came into effect on 1 October 2024 to govern the terms on which Cargill will acquire short-term and long-term capacity from Viterra Operations in the future.
Under the agreement, Viterra Operations has committed to provide Cargill with certain amounts of port terminal and up-country storage capacity.
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