Australian cotton gins attract strong foreign interest

Canada, Singapore and the Netherlands are leading the billion-dollar charge for Australian cotton supply chain assets. SEE THE FULL LIST

The cotton gin at Hay in NSW is owned by Canada’s PSP Investments.

Only about a quarter of Australia’s cotton gins are owned by local interests, as foreign raiders circle on the billion-dollar industry.
A Weekly Times investigation into who owns Australia’s agriculture supply chain found that more than 17 Australian cotton gins were controlled by direct foreign interests with a further eight backed by companies containing offshore capital.

With cotton increasing its footprint in Australia in recent years, the levels of interest from offshore players has also grown, with the likes of Singapore’s Olam Group, the Netherlands-headquartered Louis Dreyfus, and, more recently, the two-biggest investors in Australian agriculture – Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board and Macquarie Infrastructure Real Assets – flexing their muscles.

Macquarie, whose pool of money includes significant foreign capital, in 2019 purchased a stake in Australia’s biggest cotton farm, the Chinese-owned Cubbie Station at Dirranbandi in Queensland, which has its own ginning facilities. In the same year PSP – which manages the superannuation funds of Canada’s public service, armed forces and the world-famous Royal Canadian Mounted Police – snapped up, in a joint venture, Auscott’s Midkin vertically-integrated farming and ginning business near Moree in northern NSW for more than $300 million. This year it purchased the remainder of the Auscott assets, including five ginning facilities, for more than $500 million.

PSP natural resources managing director Marc Drouin said the supply chain was a major focus for the business as it looks to spend another $1 billion on agriculture globally. He said this concentration “more on that post-farmgate investment” was in an effort to “leverage the scale that we have built and be a little more meaningful for the larger customers that we are ultimately serving through our farms”.

PSP now owns six gins to ASX-listed Namoi Cotton’s 10 and the Olam Group’s eight.

AUSTRALIA’S FOREIGN-OWNED COTTON GINS

Boggabri, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Bourke, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Cecil Plains, QLD – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Dalby, QLD – Louis Dreyfus Company. NETHERLANDS

Dalby, QLD – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Dirrinbandi, QLD – Shandong-Macquarie Agriculture. CHINA

Emerald, QLD – Louis Dreyfrus Company. NETHERLANDS

Emerald, QLD – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Goondiwindi, QLD – Naomi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Hay, NSW – PSP Investments. CANADA

Hillston, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Merah North, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Merrywinebone, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Moree, NSW – Louis Dreyfus Company. NETHERLANDS

Moree, NSW – PSP Investments. CANADA

Moura, QLD – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Mungindi, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Mungindi, NSW – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Narrabri, NSW – PSP Investments. CANADA

St George, QLD – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Trangie, NSW – PSP Investments. CANADA

Trangie, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Warren, NSW – PSP Investments. CANADA

Warren, NSW – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Wathagar, NSW – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

Wee Waa, NSW – Naomi Cotton-Louis Dreyfus. NETHERLANDS/ASX

Wee Waa, NSW – Olam Group. SINGAPORE

Yarraman, QLD – Namoi Cotton. ASX LISTED

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