Holde Agri Invest posts a 157% increase in revenue in the first six months of 2022

Holde Agri Invest SA, a Romanian company that operates farmland, posts 38.2 million lei revenue in the first half of 2022, up 157% compared to the same period last year. In the first half of the year, the company carried out investments totaling 19.8 million lei, financed from its own sources, and borrowed capital to modernize existing farms and expand operated land. In the first six months of 2022, the company operated a total area of 12,300 hectares, an increase of 45%, of which 2,005 hectares were organic farming.

“In 2022, drought was once again one of the main challenges for local agriculture, and some of the Holde lands were affected by it. However, our strategy, based on a structure of farms divided over several geographical areas, proved its benefits and tipped the balance in our favor because the drought was not present in all regions of the country. Therefore, autumn crops – wheat and rapeseed- recorded a satisfactory production of 28,752 tons, an increase of 54% compared to the same period last year, of which 1,453 tons represented the production of organic crops. Combined with market prices, total income from these crops was slightly above expectations. Compared to the yields per hectare obtained in the previous agricultural year, the Rosiori, Frumusani, and Videle core farms recorded marginally lower results, while the Contesti core farm, operated for the first time this year, recorded production above expectations. However, on a general level, we are confident that we will achieve the targeted net result for this year of 8.8 million lei, regardless of the challenges we face,” stated Liviu Zagan, CEO of Holde Agri Invest.

In the first part of the year, Holde continued to invest in the expansion of farmland and, in April, completed the purchase of a new farm in Dambovita county, in Contesti commune. The farm, with a total area of 2,100 ha of land, became the fourth Holde core farm after Rosiori, Videle, and Frumusani. Also, in the first six months of the year, the company continued the investment process at the level of all four core farms by purchasing state-of-the-art equipment, expanding the irrigation system at the Frumusani farm from 125 to 275 ha, as well as by increasing the storage capacity at Calinesti, from 10,000 to 15,000 tons. In addition, in August, Holde started work on the company’s third silo, within the Frumusani farm, which will have a total capacity of 10,000 tons.

Regarding the activity in the sustainability direction, in addition to organic farming, Holde has partnered with animal farms this year to collect and compost manure. One such partnership is with Toneli Holding, announced at the end of June, which aims to ensure circular agriculture, including grain production and poultry farms for eggs. Under this partnership, Holde Agri Invest will supply grain to Toneli Holding, while the consumer egg producer will supply manure, which Holde will use for crops on its farms. This year, the company expects to use approximately 15 thousand tons of manure on an area of about 2,000 ha. Holde’s primary objective in this direction is that through the application of amendments and the addition of organic matter, soil fertility will be increased in the coming years.

In addition to operational activity, in the first semester of 2022, Holde’s management was also involved in preparing a new round of capital raising. The operation was carried out in two stages, between June and August, and as a result, approximately 21 million lei were raised from investors.

Approximately 65% of the funds raised will be directed towards expanding farmland through purchasing farms in the counties where Holde is already present, but also in neighboring counties or even in other regions of the country. The remaining 35% will be used to modernize existing farms – machinery, storage capacities, irrigation systems, and investments in agri-tech projects. Holde intends to combine financing from the funds raised following the share capital increase operation with bank loans for the land purchase.

“Since the establishment of Holde four years ago, we have rapidly passed through various successive development stages, many of which have taken place this year. Thus, we can say now that from 2022, Holde is a reliable company that has the necessary resources to overcome the obstacles specific to the field in which we operate, as well as to implement the most difficult projects. As for the challenges, they will continue to exist, but what is important is that we have a team that has all the necessary skills to handle them. We will continue to grow, and we are confident that the funds raised through the capital market and bank financing will significantly increase the company’s profitability. Regarding bank financing, we expect that by the end of the year, the syndicated financing of approximately 164 million lei will already be operational, which will give us flexibility in carrying out investment projects and more,” stated Iulian Circiumaru, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Holde Agri Invest.

As for the agri-tech field, this year, the Agrocity solution continued to support the company in managing its operations in optimal conditions, mainly thanks to new functionalities that brought more precision in carrying out its activities. Modules have also been developed regarding the production chain as well as the timing of the fertilization plan. At the level of the other agri-tech company in which Holde is involved, Enten Systems, in 2022, it started developing solutions also for large crops, the company being in the process of placing specific equipment on Holde farms plots.

Holde Agri Invest shares are listed on the AeRO market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange as of October 1, 2020, and are traded under the stock symbol HAI. The company has a market capitalization of over 120 million lei.

###

About Holde Agri Invest

Holde Agri Invest is a company initiated by a group of Romanian entrepreneurs to develop it to become a leader in agriculture in Romania. Founded in 2018, the company operates approximately 12,000 hectares of land, organized into four core farms – Roșiori farm located in Roșiori de Vede (Teleorman county), Frumușani (Călărași county), Videle (Teleorman county) and Conțești (Dâmbovița county). As of October 2020, Holde Agri Invest is a public company listed on the AeRO market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange with the stock symbol HAI, and as of October 2021, the company is included in the BET-AeRO index of BVB, having the second largest share.