Belgian deal seen as fresh European drive by Origin
Irish agri-services group Origin Enterprises’ entry into the Belgian fertiliser market is being viewed as a potential acquisition platform for its further expansion into continental Europe.
Origin has acquired Ghent-headquartered company Pillaert-Mekoson — a provider of standard and prescription fertilisers in Belgium and surrounding regions — for an undisclosed sum.
The deal marks Origin’s first foray into western Europe and is being viewed as a potential gateway for further growth, through acquisitions, in the region. As well as Ireland and Britain, the Dublin-headquartered group has businesses in Poland, Ukraine and Romania.
“In aggregate, Belgian farmers spend 22.8% of crop output on key inputs — seed, fertiliser, crop protection — which is in line with the German and French agri-sector and above the EU-28 average of 20.1%,” said analysts at Davy. “The deal is expected to be modestly accretive to earnings per share.
"It represents expansion into a new territory and a potential acquisition platform for continental Europe,” they added.
Pillaert-Mekoson generated a turnover of €35m last year, with earnings coming in at around €41.8m. Origin has taken over the company on a debt and cash free basis, with chief executive Tom O’Mahony describing it has “an excellent strategic fit for the group”.
“The transaction strongly complements our prescription fertiliser and speciality nutrition business and benefits from a well-invested and strategically located asset base.”
The deal, he said, will add further scale to Origin’s crop nutrition portfolios and will provide “an important expansion into a new geography offering multi-channel access to farm with meaningful future growth potential.”
