LDC’s Melbourne terminal. Photo: LDC

LOUIS Dreyfus Company’s Australian arm has returned to profit, reporting net income of US$13.38 million for the year ended 31 December 2025, compared with a $6.16M loss in 2024.

The financial year marked LDC’s first full year of ownership of Namoi Cotton and its affiliate companies, including its packing and marketing services.

Other subsidiaries within LDC’s Australian operations include its ginning businesses, the former Emerald Grain business, Australian Classing Services and several LDC-labelled logistics, terminal and storage companies.

A significant shift in income tax also contributed to the return to profit, moving from negative $3.37M in 2024 to $11M in 2025.

The return to profit came with a modest increase of 2.6 percent in sales revenue of $2.103 billion, up from $2.05B in the previous year.

Cost of sales rose a similar percentage at $2.04B in 2025, from $1.989B the previous year.

This resulted in a $9.39M increase in gross margin to $65.86M in 2025.

The year featured $17.78M in capital-expenditure commitments, up from zero in 2024, and $2.3M in capex guarantees given.

These are classified as amounts the group has committed to spend on assets in the future.

As at December 31, these commitments relate to previously flagged “expansion of storage capacity at Melbourne Port Terminal and to infrastructure and equipment projects at grain sites and cotton gins and warehouses”.

The report showed trade receivables past due with a net carrying amount of just over $7M in 2025, less than half the $15.85M recorded in 2024.

Strong volumes offset prices

In the directors’ report signed off on May 26, LDC chief financial officer Joshua Whiting attributed the positive result to strong volumes through the supply chain and Namoi Cotton’s contribution.

“The result was driven by strong supply chain volumes across the group’s agri-commodity processing and handling assets supported by solid grain and cotton production in Australia during the 2025 crop seasons,” Mr Whiting wrote.

“Improved profitability reflects the first full year of operations from the cotton-ginning and warehousing assets acquired through the Namoi transaction in 2024 as well as returns from recent capital investments that expanded the group’s grain handling capacity.

“Profitability was further supported by lower commercial and administrative expenses largely due to the absence of one-off acquisition costs incurred in the prior period.

“Strong export demand access through the group’s marketing network, together with healthy local export surpluses of cotton, grains and pulses, underpinned margins in the commercial operations despite a higher commodity price environment.”

He noted the potential future impact of LDC’s purchase of the BASF Food and Health Performance Ingredients business.

“In late 2025 the Food and Feed Solutions platform commenced operations in Australia following the Louis Dreyfus Company BV Group’s acquisition of the BASF Food and Health Performance Ingredients business.

“This platform is expected to make a more meaningful contribution to Group results in the next financial year.”

Mr Whiting said the business was watching events in the Middle East, but had nothing to report as of May this year.

“The group is closely monitoring the impact and development of the crisis in the Middle East.

“As of today, its operations and activities have not been impacted significantly.”

Mr Whiting has been a director of LDC since August last year.

The organisation underwent significant board turnover last year, with four directors – Tony Geitz, Axel H G Henrot, Rubens Marques and Brendan Moo – resigning in August.

Mr Whiting was joined by Paul Liew and James Zhou, who were both appointed directors on December 22.

Unchanged directors were Hong Teong Goh and David Johnson.

LDC took over Namoi Cotton on November 30, 2024.

Subsidiaries

On 4 October 2024, LDC obtained control over Namoi Cotton and 100pc ownership on November 30.

The FY25 report revealed that LDC paid A$132.67M or US$90.71M for the Namoi Cotton transaction.

The document calculated Namoi’s total assets as having a “final fair value” of US$222.15M, broken down by $137.3M in non-current assets and $84.86M in current assets.

The ginners’ liabilities are $89.45M, including $31.7M in non-current liabilities and $57.73M in current liabilities.

The report made mention of two other investments in associates and joint ventures during the year.

These included cotton-classing company ProClass, in which LDC holds a 20pc stake, and cotton-growing business Top End Share-farming, in which it holds 7pc.

LDC disposed of its investment in ProClass Pty Ltd in 2025 as a condition of the ACCC approving its takeover of Namoi Cotton.

In 2024, its 20pc interest of ProClass had a net value of $1.26M, while its interest in Top End Share-farming has a value of $17,000.

The following financial year has LDC’s share of profit or loss in associates and joint ventures at a loss of $43,000.

The document does not connect this figure with a particular entity.

LDC’s Australian business is a direct subsidiary of Singapore-based Louis Dreyfus Company Asia Pte Ltd and an indirect subsidiary of Louis Dreyfus Company BV, a privately owned company incorporated in the Netherlands.

LDC’s Australian business had 728 employees at the date of the report.

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