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£1.4bn deal picture Offices arepaints final piece of opportunity for Cristal of potato empire puzzle
by David Laister by Dave Laister Business Editor
TRANSFORMATION COMPLETE: Richard Arundel, managing director of potato processor AKP. Picture: Jon Corken
Business Editor dave.laister@grimsbytelegraph.co.uk
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dave.laister@gsmg.co.uk
DEAL to create the world’s biggesthas titanium early £3-million been pigment producer has invested into making been welcomed by the northern Lincolnshire a site central directorhubofforthe huge the needs ofStallingborough some of the plant. UK’s biggest US giant Tronox is buying out potato sellers. Cristal a £1.36 move, the ElshaminWold hasbillion just become having reached anfor agreement new headquarters AKP Group, with thetoSaudi Arabian giant owner. supplier supermarket And the and manmajor at thechip helm of the Morrisons UK operation,McCain. Rob Sarracini, manufacturer believes it will allow theblock, A state-of-the-art office combined company to compete temperature controlled potato on a greater level.and grading line, storage facility Mr Sarracini said: “This together with extensions to is a positivehandling move forareas Cristal. The existing have just combination of with mining been completed, theassets, feedstock assets, production 13-year-old firm headed by Richard assets and expertise of both Arundel moving the whole Cristal and Tronox the administration back will intoallow the area combined from York. company to expand TiO2 production, compete more The son of Grimsby town centre aggressively in the markets global and Freeman Street marketplace and provide grocer David Arundel, whoeven also better our customers. used to service act as a to potato merchant to goal to take best of the“Our area’s fishisand chipthe shops, Tronox and the of Cristal and joined forces withbest Suffolk create an even better TiO2 businessman Bruce Kerr in 1999. company, focused on serving our The former KP potato storage customers and competing facility which has now beeneven more aggressively in thewas substantially developed, marketpin lac2007, e.” when a project acquired Theto past month a definitive began grow skinsaw finished agreement signed Tronox potatoes on the Isle between of Axholme. and Titanium “WeNational wanted to show weDioxide could Company, trades as Cristal. produce thewhich required quality It will that receive $1.67 billionwere and a locally supermarkets 24 per in cent stake in the new entity. buying from Herefordshire, It makes the importing,” largest company Scotland or it even he in its field basedbacked on sales said. “Morrisons usand with it nameplate . and we wentcapacity to Yorkshire Forward On the South Bank of the (the scrapped regional Humber, more than 300 full-time development agency) putting staff anda around 100 regular together plan. We then tied the contractors employed supply chain are up and got thein what is the largest production plant of funding.” its kind in Europe. That equated to £700,000. With First opened ingrowth July 1953, Morrisons’ rapid in the pre-dating of the South retail world,much the business has been Bank industry that was attracted propelled quickly, and working by deep water portLaccess and&flat with Eastoft-based Harrison undeveloped land, ownership Co, the infrastructure to allow has for
Ice Vessel Willbreaker: Mary approve deal steelleases? supply highfor street
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64 St Peters Avenue Cleethorpes N.E. Lincolnshire SPEAKERS: Sir Roger Carr, left, DN35 and Gavin 8HPEsler.
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Sir Roger Carr, president of the CBI and Gavin Esler, best known for his role as a presenter on BBC Newsnight, have been confirmed as the guest speakers at one of the region’s leading business gatherings later this year. The CBI Yorkshire and Humber Annual Dinner takes place at Leeds University on October 10. It will be one of the first events with John Fitzgerald, port director for Grimsby and Immingham, as chairman of the region. Mr Esler is an award-winning television and radio broadcaster, novelist and journalist. His latest book, due to hit the shelves next month, focuses on lessons that can be gleaned from leaders in how they tell stories, and will be the subject of his speech to the area’s business bosses, and their guests. For more information about the dinner, which is frequently well represented by the South Bank and features a drinks reception within Parkinson Court, home to the famous Marks & Spencer archive and art gallery, e-mail katya.menhennet@cbi.org.uk or visit http://yorkshire-annual-dinner.eventbrite.com
your daily port of call £20m milestone passed POSITIVE FUTURE: Rob Sarracini, site director at Cristal, Stallingborough.
further increases hasoccasions. now been put changed on several in place. The 160-hectare site has “We haveas taken two years operated Laporte, SCM, to get toMillennium this,” said Mr Arundel.and “We got Chemicals the grant for storage and Lyo ndellfunding . grading operations in 2009, and Cristal, then a smaller built the storage throughout 2010, competitor in the industry, bought tothe be business open for that harvest. ten years ago,We in a have potatoes in from 2010 It and dealhad then worth £612 million. 2011, whole of project has and beenthe a decade sharphas been finished with the offices just contrasts, with production now. temporarily halted at Stallingborough themore recession “Our desire is toas have bit deep, and producers a major local to quality potato reorganisation thedown 150,000 this site. It wouldofcut on tonne capacity site completed transport costs. There is still a lot cently. it will help the ofrepotential, environmental footprint and this Mr Sarracini, who arrived in part of the2015 world hasstints the ability October after in the to grow some of the potatoes Middle East andbest US, told how in 2016 the country, that is what was a strong return for we theare team majoring on.” at what is one of the biggest private employers North A total of 44 peopleinare nowEast
employed, handling 120,000 tonnes Lincolnshire. Looking ahead to ofwhat potatoes a be year. Of that, 35,000 could a sixth entity in tonnes are 60 self-grown, just over years, he with said: a“Until growing innothing this region the dealgroup closes, at alland will change, so it issite business as usual around another in Suffolk, at all the Cristal sites, contributing the balance. Stallingborough included. Recently 15 employees were “Last year was graduate a great added, with three production here at trainees also year part us of the company, Stallingborough and welogistics are fully specialising in growing, focused on continuing safe, and technical elements, that including reliable production into this year, agronomy . The remaining regardlesshas of the corporate investment seen a fleet of six changes rigs taking place. in to deliver Mercedes brought the“The potatoes dealto is customers, subject to with the primary route Morrisons’ packing regulatory clearances, which we anticipatenear will Harrogate. take at least six to operations nine months. Until the deal closes, Keen to cultivate a prosperous Tronox Cristal will continue future forand Lincolnshire potato to compete as independent farmers, the 32,000sq ft storage competitors, as we have.” facility and 4,000 sq ftalways two storey Across both businesses office development – which drew Stallingborough is the only UK inspiration from Genesis Office
Park on Grimsby’s flagship production operation, with shared Europarc development, will geographies being USA andbe officially opened by Australia. Both this also week currently Agriculture Horticulture own minesand in the latter, with Tronox active in South Africa and Development Board chairman Cristal in Brazil. John Godfrey CBE, himself a North Lincolnshire Titanium dioxidefarmer. is a fine white powder which is a key ingredient Mr Arundel added: “We’re in products liketopaint, UPVC looking forward opening the plastic laminate. It gives new cold and store and grading facility brightness and durability, making – the uncharacteristic weather products easier to use and conditions have brought us akinder to the environment. challenging year, but the opening event is just rewards forand everyone’s It also gives plastics rubber hard work. opacity and whiteness, and is used in products diverse as “The new facilityas will not only printing inks, paper, ceramics, enable us to meet the demand of glass, leather, synthetic our biggest customers, butfibres we’veand colour for art paints. also successfully improved the Raw and materials undergo highly quality freshness of our complex potatoes bychemical reducingprocesses, with the site a top-tier Comahand using transportation, handling oplatest eratiocold n. store technologies.” the
A FURTHER £4-million of investment across the region this last quarter has seen the total funds issued by Finance Yorkshire climb to £23-million. The money, available to firms in northern Lincolnshire in seedcorn, loan and equity linked investments – ranging from £15,000 to £2-million – is there to help small and medium sized businesses meet their growth and development requirements. The figure amounts to 224 investments in 183 small and medium sized enterprises since August 2010, leading to more than 4,600 jobs created and visit inhumberbusiness.com safeguarded the region. In the last quarter alone, the venture capital and loan fund completed 30 investments totalling more than £4.3 million. Alex McWhirter, chief executive of Finance Yorkshire, said: “We are looking forward to building on these figures and helping more companies achieve growth in the coming months. “We urge established and early stage companies to continue to speak to us to see if Finance Yorkshire can help turn their ambitions into a reality.” Supported by the European Union, it has attracted £30-million investment from the European Regional Development Fund, £15-million from Yorkshire Forward’s Single Programme, and £45-million match funding from the European Investment Bank. For information visit www.finance-yorkshire.com
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