The president of the Brazilian company assured that the merger will take place, but that delays generate higher costs for the purchasing party.
The founder and president of Marfrig, Marlos Molina, assured that the merger with Minerva in Uruguay will be carried out this year despite the delays that the operation faces in its approval, within the framework of the analysis of the Commission for the Promotion and Defense of Competition (Coprodec) of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF).
He second semester is the period estimated by Marfrig authorities to officially sell three of its four refrigeration plants in Uruguay—Colonia, La Caballada Jumping and Inaler from San José—to his compatriot from Brazil, Minerva Foods, which already owns four establishments: PUL, Carrasco, Canelones and BPU.
In this regard, Molina assured that he has no doubt that the agreement will be finalized and highlighted that the delay will bring more costs for Minerva, as reported by Blasina y Asociados. In that sense, the president of the Brazilian company that will maintain specific operations in the country has already received 300 million dollars as an advance for the sale that, from the purchasing side, they hope to become official. before mid-year.
It should be remembered that the sale of Marfrig refrigerators to Minerva is not only carried out in Uruguay, but is part of a regional operation that also includes the sale of 12 plants in Brazil, one in Chili and one in Argentina. Of the total amount of resources coming from the sale of assetssome 1.5 billion dollars will be allocated to the debt reduction and the purchase of livestock.
In the country, the Brazilian company would only keep the refrigerator Tacuarembo.
What status is the Minerva-Marfrig operation in Uruguay?
Currently, the purchase operation of Marfrig by Minerva is in a second stage of analysis by Coprodec, in which to study the considerations and additional information provided by both the parties and third parties involved. The deadline for receipt and appearances ended on March 19—after it was extended five days from its original deadline, March 14—and now the agency is weighing the new material available to make a decision.
Meanwhile, Minerva experienced a 40% drop in profits during 2023, and a 10% drop in its shares; data that will not go unnoticed in the study carried out by Coprodec. In that sense, with a total of 79.46 million dollars of net earnings, The Brazilian company had a drop of 39.6% during 2023 and compared to 2022. Meanwhile, the net income They represented a decrease of 13.2% with a total of 5.38 billion dollars.
The gross incomeFor their part, they also decreased by 12.9% during 2023 to $5.75 billion, while net profits fell 9.7% to a total of $514.35 million.
From Minerva, meanwhile, they hope that the official decision of the national competition defense body will be available during the second quarter of the year, as confirmed by the company’s CFO and director of investor relations, Edison Ticle.
Source: Ambito
