Diversified listed firm A. Brown Co. Inc. is setting up a wholly-owned subsidiary in Surigao to manufacture and refine crude palm oil.
A. Brown is acquiring all of the 12.5 million shares that will be issued by Surigao Greens Agri Corp. (SGAC) during its incorporation. SGAC will engage, according to its
incorporation papers, “in the business of processing, milling and refining palm oil to manufacture crude palm oil, Refined Beached Deodorized Palm Oil, Palm Olein, and other products and to distribute such products on a wholesale or retail basis….”
A study made last year by of U.S.-based firm Vantage Market Research project the global palm oil market to growth annually by a compounded 3.3 percent to reach $75.7 billion by 2028 “driven by its easy availability, various applications, and low cost of product as compared to other vegetable oils.”
Real estate development is the core business of A. Brown. It has since diversified into power generation, water utilities, and agribusiness.
In the nine months to September, A. Brown reported a net profit of P489.2 million, up 33 percent from P368.1 million in the year-earlier period.
The business is also even now setting up the country’s first commercial electron beam irradiation facility which is scheduled for completion by September this year.
The project, a first in the country and located in a 1.17 hectare property in Tanay, Rizal, is handled by its Irradiation Solutions Inc. unit (ISI).
The Philippine Nuclear Research Institute, which has championed the creation of a private irradiation facility since 2017, welcomes the soon operating Tanay facility.
Paul B. Juat, ISI CEO, said: “We are anticipating the creation of more jobs and other opportunities as a result of this new facility expected to create an impact on the local economy of Rizal. And with irradiation technology recognized globally as a proven and safe technology, we can better support the growth of various industries and help develop multiple downstream industries as well,” Juat said.
