By Alys Marshall and Brandon Long
Australia's oldest and biggest cotton ginning company is set to be transferred into international hands.
Key points:
- The agreement will see LDC acquire the remainder of the shares it does not own
- LDC already owns and operates cotton gins in the NT, Queensland and NSW
- Namoi Cotton shareholders are yet to sign off on the agreement
In a letter to the ASX today, Namoi Cotton announced it had entered into a scheme implementation agreement with the Singapore-based Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC).
The arrangement will see LDC take on the remaining 83 per cent of shares in Namoi Cotton it does not yet own.
The companies were already involved in a joint venture and Namoi Cotton stated that a merger was the preferred option following its strategic review in June 2023.
Namoi Cotton owns and operates 10 cotton gins in New South Wales and Queensland and is in the process of building a long-anticipated new gin in Kununurra, Western Australia.
In the ASX announcement Namoi Cotton chief executive Tim Watson said the scheme would come into effect in mid-2024.
"Until then the Namoi team will be focused on preparing for and delivering – business as usual – for the forthcoming ginning season to our grower customers," he said.
"We will also be progressing with the delivery of our obligations to construct and subsequently operate the new gin at Kununurra for the Kimberley Cotton Company."