Glencore’s agriculture division Viterra has confirmed its plans to reduce its presence in the Russian market, AgriCensus reported.
The company’s announcement on 30 March followed a similar move by global agribusiness giant Cargill, the report on the same date said.
“Viterra Limited has decided not to continue its origination and export programmes out of Russia after 1 July. Following continued monitoring of the situation over the past year, Viterra has concluded that its activities in Russia no longer fit the long-term direction of the company,” a spokesperson told AgriCensus.
“We are assessing options to transfer our business and assets in Russia to new owners and will provide further information when and if appropriate,” the spokesperson added.
Viterra is the fourth biggest Russian grain exporter, with 2.1M tonnes approved for export in the 16 February-30 June period this year, according to the AgriCensus report. The company owns a terminal in Rostov-on-Don and a 50% stake in a terminal in the port of Taman, while another 50% is owned by Demetra Holding, which is 45% owned by Russian state bank VTB.
Demetra Holding was the primary owner of the terminals and port in the largest Russian Black Sea export facility of Novorossisysk, as well as of the rail operator Rusagrotrans, AgriCensus wrote.
On 29 March, World Grain reported that Cargill would stop elevating and handling Russian grain for export in July 2023 following the completion of the 2022/23 season but would continue shipping Russian grain. The company did not say if the decision to stop handling Russian grain meant it would sell any of its Russian assets.
