São Paulo – Saudi Arabia announced on Monday (24) the creation of the National Grain Company, via a joint venture involving the Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Co. (SALIC) and the National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri). SALIC is the majority shareholder in Minerva Foods of Brazil.
According to the Bahri website, the joint venture will build a grain handling terminal at the Yanbu Commercial Port to cater to Saudi Arabia’s needs.
The facility will see SAR 412 million in investment, the rough equivalent of USD 110 million. Construction is expected to begin in the second half of 2021, with completion and commercial operations slated for the second half of 2022. The terminal will be able to handle from 3 million to 5 million tons per year.
According to Bahri, the project will span 313,000 sqm, with 280,000 tons in storage capacity. The executing party will be announced in the second half of this year, the company said.
The partnership was made official during a ceremony attended by Saudi minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture and SALIC board chairman Abdul Rahman Al-Fadhli, Saudi Grains Organization (SAGO) governor Ahmed Al-Faris, Bahri board chairman Mohammed Al-Sarhan, Bahri CEO Abdullah Al-Dubaikhi, and SALIC CEO Sulaiman Al-Rumaih.
“This partnership will play a pivotal role in strengthening supply chains in the Kingdom, as it establishes the largest regional center for grains (…), which in turn significantly contributes to enhancing food distribution solutions in the region through importing, processing, and exporting grains to Saudi Arabia,” Al-Fadhli said.
Al-Sarhan said Bahri has been working to ensure food security in Saudi Arabia, by shipping some 1.5 million tons of grain per year via its five-ship fleet. He also said four new vessels will be added this year, enabling the company to carry 5 million tons’ worth of feed and grains including barley, maize, wheat and soy.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
