RIYADH, Saudi Arabia and
WHITE PLAINS, New York,
Feb. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Bahri
Dry Bulk Company ("BDB"), a subsidiary of the Bahri Group, the
national shipping arm of the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia, and Koninklijke Bunge B.V. ("Bunge"), a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG), a global
agribusiness and food company, announced today they have signed
definitive agreements forming a joint venture ("JV") to establish a
leading ocean freight supplier for dry bulk import and export flows
in and out of the Middle East
region.
The JV, which will operate under the name Bunge Bahri Dry Bulk
Ltd., will provide exclusive freight transportation services to
regional and other international customers. The company plans to
ship over 5 million metric tons in year one, ramping up volume over
time to double-digit figures. BDB and Bunge will own 60/40% of the
JV respectively, and it will be registered and based in
Dubai. Financial terms of the
agreements were not disclosed.
"Bunge is excited to partner with BDB to strengthen our presence
in the Middle East," said
Brian Thomsen, Managing Director,
Bunge Global Agribusiness and CEO, Bunge Product Lines. "We expect
the JV to become a carrier of choice for customers importing grains
and other agricultural commodities in the Middle East, as well as for dry bulk exports
outside of the region. The JV combines Bunge's expertise in
providing freight services and risk management with BDB's unique
knowledge of Middle Eastern customers and their needs to address
growing demand in the region."
"This JV is one of BDB's strategic initiatives to reduce
complexity for our customers along the value chain. Working with a
leading global player in commodity trading brings the necessary
commercial and market intelligence to dry bulk supply and demand
fundamentals, and Bunge brings crucial expertise and scale to the
table," said Ibrahim Al-Omar, Chief
Executive Officer, Bahri. "Their global presence in commodity flows
and knowledge of the freight market, coupled with our maritime
expertise and strategic position in the region, creates a powerful
alliance to meet growing demand for freight services within the
Middle East."
The JV, which will be financed pro rata by BDB and Bunge, will
charter and commercially operate SUPRAMAX and/or PANAMAX (and/or
other suitably sized dry bulk vessels) initially from the fleet
currently owned or managed by BDB and subsequently from third
parties.
About Bahri Dry Bulk Company
Bahri Dry Bulk, a 60/40
joint venture between Bahri and Arabian Agricultural Services
Company (ARASCO), is the leading bulk carrier in Saudi Arabia specializing in the
transportation of grain, coal, barley and other dry bulk cargoes.
Bahri Dry Bulk is one of six business units within Bahri, a global
leader in logistics and transportation, headquartered in
Saudi Arabia.
Bahri Dry Bulk has a diversified regional customer portfolio
with well-established, long-term shipping partnerships with key
regional cargo owners. Having registered a growth of over 300% of
cargo volumes during 2016, BDB aims to capture about 14 Mtons by
2020, with the support of its JV partner and expand into global
markets.
About Bahri
Established in 1978, Bahri is one of the
world's foremost logistics and transportation companies, playing a
leading role in the transformation and growth of the global
shipping industry through innovation and delivering value-added
onshore and offshore services. As a global leader in the logistics
and transportation industry, Bahri has six business units that
include Oil, Chemicals, Logistics, Dry Bulk, Ship Management, and
Data.
Bahri is the second largest owner of Very Large Crude Carriers
(VLCCs) in the world, and the largest owner of chemical tankers in
the Middle East. Presently, the
company owns 84 vessels, including 37 VLCCs, 36 chemical/product
tankers, 6 multipurpose vessels, and 5 dry-bulk carriers with
additional 9 VLCCs on order.
Bahri is committed to playing an integral and leading role in
realizing Saudi Arabia's Vision
2030 by continuously enhancing and expanding its services and
presence across the world, enabling the opening of new trade
routes, and positioning Saudi
Arabia as a unique regional logistics gateway to three
continents.
Bahri has around 2,400 dedicated employees across its global
network of offices in Saudi
Arabia, UAE, USA and
India.
For more information, please visit:
www.bahri.sa
www.facebook.com/OneBahri/
www.twitter.com/onebahri
www.linkedin.com/company/bahri
www.youtube.com/user/bahriupdate/feed
About Bunge Limited
Bunge Limited (www.bunge.com,
NYSE: BG) is a leading global agribusiness and food company
operating in over 40 countries with approximately 32,000 employees.
Bunge buys, sells, stores and transports oilseeds and grains to
serve customers worldwide; processes oilseeds to make protein meal
for animal feed and edible oil products for commercial customers
and consumers; produces sugar and ethanol from sugarcane; mills
wheat, corn and rice to make ingredients used by food companies;
and sells fertilizer in South
America. Founded in 1818, the company is headquartered in
White Plains, New York.
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Statements
This press release contains both historical and
forward-looking statements. All statements, other than statements
of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act
of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements are not based
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prices for agricultural commodities and other raw materials and
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our ability to achieve the efficiencies, savings and other benefits
anticipated from our cost reduction, margin improvement and other
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and trade policies, tax regulations and biofuels legislation; and
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