Ingham’s has entered into an agreement to acquire the land and buildings associated with its Bolivar primary processing plant in Burton, South Australia, which Inghams has operated under a long-term lease since 2014.
To facilitate the acquisition, Inghams will acquire 100% of the units from the Soilbuild Australia Trust for AU$76 million plus acquisition costs. The acquisition will be funded utilizing the company’s existing debt facility and the final purchase price is subject to working capital adjustments at the date of completion.
Soilbuild Australia Trust has owned the property for about five years. It announced its intent to purchase the facility and land, already under lease by Ingham's, in 2018.
The purchase is expected to be finalized in mid-December 2023, subject to satisfaction of customary conditions.
Ingham’s stated that the acquisition is a strategically important investment and is not expected to have any substantial affect on the company’s earnings per share. The acquisition, however, does align with Ingham’s desire to own property on a freehold basis where commercially and operationally sensible. The land and facility ownership also brings more flexibility into the primary processing network, removes the future escalation of rental costs in connection with the site and secures the ability to remain at an operationally important and established location over the medium to long term.
Ingham’s, according to information from the WATTPoultry.com Top Companies Database, is the largest poultry producer of Oceania, with operations in Australia and New Zealand. During the past year, the company slaughtered 230 million broilers. The company is involved in both the broiler and turkey industries.
