If Sunoko company, majority owned by MK Group and Miodrag Kostic, succeed in the fierce competition to buy Greece’s Hellenic sugar, this will not only open a new market, but will get the capacity to become a serious player in the industry that will, in all probability, in the next decade to double production.
12 major companies not only from Europe, emerged in the international tender announced by the Greek ATE Bank. However, it was forced to sell after the May credit package to help Greece in the European Union, which sought to sell part of the capital to maintain solvency. That’s how the market found a 82.3 percent stake in Hellenic sugar industry, according to announcements from the bank, Kostić’s Sunoko is one of the most serious candidates for future owners. Today, the bank confirmed the score, and that the company entered into another round of bidding, but “to protect business interests, they are unable to provide further comment.”
Sunoko still believe that the tender will be completed by the end of this year, and until then will likely get the opinion of the Competition Commission, which should give its approval to this transaction.
The MK Group does not expect that the state fails the job, even though, theoretically, could have anti-monopoly commission to deny the purchase, and order Kostic to sell some of the factories or to determine the mechanism of price control of sugar. Under current conditions, Sunoko will this year produce 220,000 tons of sugar, although it has the capacity of its three sugar refineries receives more than 300,000 tons. The local market is around 120,000 which is about 50 percent of annual consumption, while other quantities are going to export. As a reminder, Serbia has approved a quota of 140,000 tons of sugar to the EU, and for a total of 380,000 tons a secured market, and all other amounts are usually placed in a free export to the countries of the region.
– The interest of Serbia is definitely the consolidation of the overall market and production capacity. In Europe now has four to five companies that produce one million to 2.5 million tons of sugar a year, in a clash with the giants, no one who produces less than 150,000 tons, there is no chance for survival.
Sunoko is already the most efficient sugar producer in Europe at this time is far better than others in Serbia. With the acquisition of Greek company, MK group had about 80 percent of the sugar market in the country, it would become the owner of two sugar refineries in Serbia, as well as five sugar factories in Greece. This would be a great opportunity for long-term sustainable development of sugar beet production and sugar exports to the European and the Greek market – say, for today the MK Group to add to the existing six sugar refineries in Serbia, the most optimistic scenario, the future has only four, which is the maximum for our country.
