Russia's VTB buys 50% of Taman grain terminal from Ukraine's Kernel

Kernel Holding SA

23/03/2020 08:10

MOSCOW, March 23 (Reuters) - Russian state-controlled VTB
bank  VTBR.MM , which has been expanding its grain business, has
bought a half of the Taman grain terminal in the Russian part of
the Black Sea from Ukraine's Kernel  KER.WA , it said on Monday.
    Global trade giant Glencore  GLEN.L , which owns the other
half of the terminal, remains VTB's partner in it, VTB added.
Russia is the world's largest wheat exporter, which has only a
limited number of grain terminals in deep-water ports. Taman is
one of the key terminals.
    Kernel sold the stake for 61 million euros ($65 million)
paid in cash, it said in its statement. It has not been involved
in grain marketing in Russia since 2017, assigning its
transshipment quota in the terminal to Glencore.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nFWN2BF01Z
    VTB, Russia's second-largest lender, which aims to become a
national grains champion, became the largest operator of
Russia's grain export infrastructure and a grain trader after a
series of acquisitions in 2019.
    "As part of VTB's grain market strategy, the deal will allow
us to achieve significant synergies with VTB Group's existing
assets in infrastructure, logistics and grain export," Yuri
Soloviev, VTB's first deputy chief executive, said in the
statement.
    In November, VTB and Russian vegetable oil producer EFKO
agreed to build another grain terminal in Taman, close to the
one in which it purchased the stake on Monday.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2812KG
    VTB has been also looking at other options to expand grain
export capacity in the Russian part of the Black and Azov Seas.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N28U11Y
    
($1 = 0.9325 euros)  

 (Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov and Tatiana Voronova; writing by
Polina Devitt; editing by Louise Heavens)
 ((Polina.Devitt@thomsonreuters.com; +7 495 775 12 42; Reuters
Messaging: polina.devitt.reuters.com@reuters.net))