Cargill tells Brazilian government it wants to buy soy facilities in country

U.S. grain trader Cargill will submit to Brazilian antitrust authorities a request for approval of a deal to acquire three soy-crushing plants in the country as it tries to stay competitive against rivals in the world's biggest soy producer.

Minnetonka-based Cargill said in a statement Monday that the deal involves crushing and biodiesel plants in addition to four warehouses. They all belonged to Granol, a privately owned soy crusher.

Cargill's move is a sign of likely consolidation in Brazil's soy-crushing industry at a time of cheap soybean supplies after a bumper crop.

In June, Cargill expressed an interest in bidding for the assets of another privately owned crusher, Imcopa, which is in bankruptcy.

Cargill and Granol declined to disclose the deal's value, citing confidentiality related to the antitrust approval process.

Paula Cadette, daughter of one of Granol's founders and the firm's director-superintendent, said by telephone that the age of the company's owners and large working capital requirements were key factors in the decision to sell 100% of Granol's biodiesel business to Cargill.

Granol is keeping two soy-processing plants in São Paulo state that make soyoil and soymeal, including one with a "toll crush agreement" with Cargill in the town of Bebedouro, she said.

It is still up for discussion if the toll agreement will be renewed with Cargill, she said.

After the sale to Cargill, which Cadette noted took "some years" to negotiate, Granol was left with 30% of its original soy-crushing capacity at two plants in São Paulo state.

A spokesman for Cargill said the deal shows the importance of Brazil to Cargill's global operations and its focus on renewable energies, a reference to biodiesel.