When fertilisers don't work any more, Niculae bets on milk
Ioan Niculae, considered one of the wealthiest people in
Romania, and known especially for his businesses in the chemical
fertilisers industry through the InterAgro group, decided to focus
on several sectors, all of which having to do with consumer
goods.
One of them is the milk sector, with Niculae saying he has over
1,000 cows in Zimnicea, and that he plans to invest 2 million euros
in a UHT milk packaging line.
Niculae has recently explained InterAgro's development through the
need to create levers able to support the chemical fertilisers
business.
Four of the six chemical plants have been closed down, two of them
- Viromet and NitroPoros at the beginning of this year, with
InterAgro representatives explaining this decision through the
"major losses caused by the new natural gas policies promoted by
the authorities."
This has persuaded Niculae to develop his businesses in several
sectors, with milk being a major target for InterAgro.
Currently, the business held by the InterAgro owner in the sector
is not very large, but has risen significantly in the past few
years. So, after a 3.8 million-RON (0.9 million-euro) turnover in
2009, Niculae estimates a 5.8 million-RON (1.4 million-euro)
turnover in 2010, while forecasts for this year are even better,
with the businessman expecting his milk business alone to fetch him
7.5 million RON (1.8 million euros) in 2011.