HAMBURG (Reuters) - Germany’s Nordzucker has finalised the takeover of Australian sugar producer Mackay Sugar under plans to expand outside Europe to Australia and Asia, it said on Wednesday.
Farmers who own shares in Mackay Sugar on Monday voted to accept a takeover offer from Nordzucker, helping secure the company's future against a backdrop of depressed world sugar prices.
Unlisted Nordzucker, Germany's second-largest sugar producer, in February agreed an initial deal to buy a 70% stake in the Australian firm as part of its strategy to expand outside the depressed European market.
The deal involves the purchase of three sugar factories with annual output of around 700,000 tonnes using sugar cane. Nordzucker’s European operations are focused on sugar beet.
"Thanks to the cost structures, cane sugar production is profitable even at lower sugar prices and the infrastructure in the Mackay region is optimal," Nordzucker chief executive Lars Gorissen said.
"In addition to the stable Australian sugar market, MSL gives us access to the world's largest growth market in Southeast Asia."
Nordzucker will now invest in the three Australian plants with the aim of significantly increasing the capability of the factories, the company said.
(Reporting by Michael Hogan; Editing by Jan Harvey)
