Golden Springs Group, the parent company of tilapia farmer Regal Springs, announced on 20 July it has sold 75 percent of animal nutrition and feed company Gold Coin Management Holdings Ltd. to Pilmico International Pte Ltd. for approximately USD 412.5 million (EUR 352.1 million).
Pilmico is a Philippines-based subsidiary of Aboitiz Equity Ventures focused on agribusiness and food. The company operates in the Philippines and Vietnam and exports products to Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Hong Kong.
Founded in Singapore in 1953, Gold Coin is a manufacturer of animal feed within Asia, with 21 production facilities in 11 countries. The firm has a milling capacity of approximately 3.1 million metric tons annually of combined livestock and aquaculture feed, including hatchery feed, premixes, concentrates, and compound feed. In 2017, Gold Coin generated net revenues of USD 751 million (EUR 641 million) and EBITDA of USD 44 million (EUR 37.6 million).
“ASEAN’s market size of 500 million will bring many opportunities to expand our customer base,” Pilmico President and CEO Sabin M. Abioiz said in a press release. “This acquisition serves as a platform towards achieving Pilmico’s strategy to grow our core feed milling business beyond ASEAN and now across Asia. This acquisition will add three million metric tons of volume, which quadruples our overall feeds production capacity.”
The transaction will see the start of a long-term partnership between Aboitiz Group and GSG, which will continue to retain a 25 percent stake in Gold Coin, according to Golden Springs Chairman Peter Zuellig.
“The Zuellig and Aboitiz families have known each other for generations. I am excited about the partnership with Aboitiz Group, one of the largest and most established conglomerates in the region. The partnership will strengthen Gold Coin’s growth profile and long-term value creation potential,” Zuellig said. “The growth of Asia Pacific’s livestock feed industry continues to outpace global production, underpinned by solid macroeconomic fundamentals. Gold Coin, as one of the leading animal nutrition platforms in Asia Pacific, is well-poised to capitalize on rising protein consumption. GSG has decided to continue to retain a minority stake to ensure that we are able to participate in Gold Coin’s strong growth potential as it executes on its expansion strategies together with Pilmico.”
Gold Coin General Manager Gerald Wilflingseder said the integration of Gold Coin and Pilmico is “expected to generate substantial synergies for both companies.”
“We look forward to working with Aboitiz and GSG to crystallize Gold Coin’s strategic vision,” Wilflingseder said.
In 2015, Singapore-based Golden Springs Group purchased a minority stake in Regal Springs, which farms tilapia in Mexico, Honduras and Indonesia, and it took over 100 percent ownership of the company in August 2016.
Photo courtesy of Gold Coin
