Inside Sugar beets
Denouement is approaching for Belgian beet factory
A final decision will be taken in June 2019 on the construction of the sugar factory in Seneffe in Wallonia. In the second round of subscriptions, almost €7 million in capital was raised and the required volume of beet has also increased.
After a first round of registration, it turned out that there were too few money and too few beets to get the factory up and running. Some €4,1 million still had to be raised to raise the €50 million needed to start construction. The total capital has now risen to €46 million, although the target has also shifted: to €57 million. It means that 80% of the required equity is in place.
Moment of truth
Also, approximately 80% of the required volume of beets is inside. At least 1,4 million tons of beet is needed, while the current volume is 1,2 million tons. In total, 1.253 Belgian growers are willing to invest in the factory. Together, these growers form the CoBT cooperative. The plan of 4 arable farmers, which arose out of dissatisfaction with the low beet price, seems to be getting close to the moment of truth, writes Felt.
In addition, the cooperative also counts on money from other investors, such as the Walloon investment company. That would come with about € 60 million. Also, €14 million would come from the Walloon government, which has already pledged €7 million. The total investment amounts to €327 million, of which approximately €200 million can be borrowed from banks.
Anne-Jan Doorn
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