TAMAN, RUSSIA — Demetra Holding LLC (part of VTB Group) has acquired a 50% stake in Taman Grain Terminal Holdings, which owns 100% of Taman Grain Terminal Complex LLC (TGTC), a deep-sea specialized grain handling terminal located on Russia’s Black Sea coast.

Demetra Holding LLC purchased the 50% stake from the Ukrainian agricultural holding, Kernel. Glencore Agriculture, one of the world’s leading trading companies in agricultural products, remains a 50% partner of VTB in TGTC. The transaction has been structured in accordance with Russian and applicable foreign regulations.

TGTC is the only specialized deep-sea facility that handles transshipment of grain for export in the Black Sea port of Taman. Future development strategy includes investment in the expansion of the terminal handling capacity, particularly through the construction of a rail link that will allow for delivery of grain by rail.

Yuri Soloviev, first deputy chairman of the management board of VTB Bank, said as part of VTB’s strategy in the grain sector, the transaction will allow it to “achieve significant synergies with the existing assets of VTB Group in the area of transport infrastructure, logistics and grain export handling.”

”Given the current economic situation, the development of infrastructure and optimization of processes is an important factor in advancing the country’s export potential and agricultural sector in Russia,” Soloviev said. “In an environment of volatile markets and global economic instability, the creation of a vertically integrated market player will  improve the overall efficiency of the Russian grain logistics, increase price transparency, attract new capital, as well as promote the modernization of the existing infrastructure on the whole.”

He noted that TGTC is one of the most promising, dynamically developing grain terminals on the Black Sea coast of the Russian Federation. The terminal provides a wide range of services related to grain cargo handling. The terminal’s annual throughput capacity is 4 million tonnes. The terminal is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, and employs advanced process control systems, allowing for highly efficient and cost-effective operations.

VTB is a Russian state-controlled bank that is the largest operator of the country’s grain export infrastructure and a major grain trader after a series of acquisitions in 2019.