Zen-Noh Grain Corp., Covington, La., the U.S. subsidiary of Japanese farming cooperative Zen-Noh, will be required to divest nine grain elevators to get approval of its proposed $300 million acquisition of 35 operating and 13 idled grain elevators from Bunge North America, St. Louis (GM April 24, 2020), according to the U.S. Department of Justice on June 1. The nine are located in five states along the Mississippi River and its tributaries – Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana, and Missouri.
To clear the way for the acquisition, Zen-Noh has agreed to sell 11 elevators to Viserion Grain LLC, Boulder, Colo., a new entrant backed by Pinnacle Asset Management, New York City, or an alternative buyer approved by the U.S.
Eight of the units are Bunge’s (Shawneetown in Illinois; Huffman, Riverside, Landside, and Helena in Arkansas; Lake Providence and Lettsworth in Louisiana; and McGregor in Iowa) and three are elevators already owned by Zen-Noh affiliate Consolidated Grain and Barge Co. (Caruthersville and Cottonwood Point in Missouri, and Savanna in Illinois).
“These facilities located across major inland U.S. waterways are integral to expanding our agricultural trading platform,” said Aaron Wiegand, Viserion CEO and an ex-Bunge executive. “The addition of these assets will accelerate our growth and provide a strong foundation to market grain and oilseeds directly to domestic customers and exporters.”
The elevators have total storage capacity of 25 million bushels, Viserion said in a separate statement. The deal is subject to regulatory approval and depends on the closing of the deal between Zen-Noh and Bunge. Both transactions are expected to close later this spring.
Companies managed by Pinnacle have been boosting their position in physical commodities trading, having invested in Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, the world’s largest cattle feeding operation, and energy trader Six One Commodities, according to Bloomberg. Pinnacle has about $3.2 billion in assets under management.