Canadian agribusiness Richardson International Ltd., Winnipeg, is in an expansion mode in 2010, recently snapping up two ag retailers in the Peace River area of Alberta as well as revealing plans to expand its existing retail outlets.
Richardson this week bought Eco Seeds, Fairview, Alberta, which includes crop service centers in Fairview and Rycroft. Richardson plans to add a new 1,200 mt fertilizer storage facility with a high-speed blender to the Fairview location. Adam Laliberte, previous owner-operator of Eco Seeds, will stay on to manage the Fairview operation.
In February, Richardson completed the acquisition of Total Ag Ltd.’s crop input facility at Falher, also in the Peace River region of Alberta. Kimber Mader, the previous owner-operator, will continue to manage operations at the location.
“This year, we will be rolling out the third phase of our multi-year strategic plan to expand and improve our operations,” says Darwin Sobkow, Richardson’s Agribusiness vice president. “By investing in the front end of our Richardson Pioneer Ag Business Centers, we are not only improving the capacity and efficiency we can provide to our customers today, we are anticipating their future needs as we work together to meet the growing global demand for quality Canadian crops.”
In 2010, Richardson is to invest C$20 million to expand the following ag business centers in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
- Olds, AB – Increasing storage capacity by 13,000 mt, adding a high-capacity grain dryer, enhancing on-site office space, and expanding rail car capacity to accommodate a 112-car unit train.
- Hamlin, SK (North Battleford) – Increasing storage capacity by 14,000 mt.
- Canora, SK – Building a new 1,200 mt fertilizer storage facility with a 300 mt/hr continuous high-speed blender.
- Yorkton, SK – Building a multi fertilizer distribution facility with 30,000 mt of storage capacity, including the ability to receive fertilizer unit trains, support rail and truck receiving at 750 mt/h, and ship at 300 mt/h (with an additional 400 mt of overhead storage).