Union Agriculture Group

Union Agriculture Group S.A. (UAG), is one of the largest Uruguayan agricultural producers and was founded in 2008 for production of rice, soybeans and wheat, as well as in the breeding of sheep and cattle. It was the first company in its sector (agribusiness) with shares traded on the Montevideo Stock Exchange (BVM). The company operates more than 100 farms, totaling about 316,000 hectares.

Union Agriculture Group S.A. (UAG)
TypePrivate
IndustryAgribusiness
Founded2008
HeadquartersMontevideo, Uruguay
Area served
Uruguay
Key people
Ricardo Lopes (Board of Directors)

Ignacio Rubio (CEO) Oscar León (Director) José Pedro Sanchez (Director)

Braulio Píriz (Director)
Revenue$ 394,23 millions (2022)
Total assets$ 3,8 billion (2022)
OwnerRL Investment Inc. (Agriculture Investment Group Corp) 86.77% | China Investment Corporation (Chengdong Investment Corp.) 10,00%.
Members500+
SubsidiariesGranosur Holdings Limited
Websiteunionagrogroup.com

The company's headquarters is in Montevideo, Uruguay.

History

It was founded in 2008 by Uruguayan businessman Juan Sartori with foreign capital, to be a blueberry cultivation company, but it quickly diversified its agricultural operations in the production of rice, soybeans and wheat, as well as in raising sheep and cattle. Through its subsidiaries, UAG owns the company Granosur, thereby generating an agricultural value chain, from production, marketing, and logistics to processing and export facilities.[1][2][3][4]

Stock Exchange

In May 2013, UAG listed on the Montevideo Stock Exchange (BVM), the first IPO in Uruguay since 2007.[5] The company became the largest company listed on the stock exchange and accounted for approximately 70 percent of the capitalization stock market.[6]

In April 2019, its shareholders decided to take the company from open market to private.[7]

Acquisitions

In February 2014, UAG acquired 100 percent of Uruguayan assets in El Tejar for $170 million, as part of its plan to build its main properties in the country and consolidate its position as one of the largest agribusinesses in Latin America.

Granosur is a wholly owned subsidiary of UAG since 2015,[8] focused on physical grain trading, storage and logistics. It has more than 81,000 tonnes of grain storage capacity across five different locations in Uruguay.[9]

Withdrawal from Union Group

UAG was part of the Union Group, where Juan Sartori also developed business in the areas of electricity and real estate. In 2018, with his departure from the direction of the UAG company, business was also disrupted, leaving only the agricultural business for UAG.

Sartori's departure from the company cost UAG an amount of $3 million. Currently, UAG's operations have no connection with Juan Sartori's Union Acquisition Corp[10]

Worldwide Operations

Until 2018 UAG belonged to Chinese investors, who also made investments in Oceania, in countries such as Australia and New Zealand. The company currently owns three properties in Australia totaling more than 50,000 hectares of arable land, with Angus, Waygu and sheep operations. In 2019, UAG sold its 2,800-hectare Mount Falcon property for $8.9 million.[11]

References
  1. "Si le va bien el accionista invertirá". Elobservador.com.uy. 26 January 2012. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
  2. Tracy Withers (16 August 2010). "Union Agriculture Plans NZ Farming Bid; to Beat Olam - Bloomberg Business". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
  3. "Union Agriculture Group Sprott Resource Corp. Private Equity. Real Assets". Sprottresource.com. 30 June 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
  4. "Un grupo agrнcola apuesta a minerнa en Uruguay y regiуn - Diario EL PAIS - Montevideo - Uruguay". Elpais.com.uy. 27 February 2013. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
  5. "Con su decisión de cotizar en bolsa, Union Agriculture Group puede abrir "un ciclo nuevo" en el mercado de capitales uruguayo". ESPECTADOR.COM. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  6. "View from the C-suite: Union group goes from blueberries and beyond". www.fdiintelligence.com. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  7. Cantera, Juan Pedro (24 April 2019). "Superintendencia de servicios financieros – resolución" [Superintendency of financial services – resolution] (PDF). Central Bank of Uruguay (in Spanish).
  8. Sodio. "NEWS,LATEST NEWS". www.unionagrogroup.com. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
  9. "Granosur - Granosur nace para desarrollar una nueva forma de trabajo en el sector agropecuario del Uruguay y la región". www.granosur.com. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
  10. BUSQUEDA, Semanario. "Sartori acordó pago de despido con UAG por unos US$ 3 millones". BUSQUEDA (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  11. Kemp, Daniel (18 November 2019). "Union Agriculture sells Mount Falcon property". Agri Investor. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
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