WILTON, CONNECTICUT, October 1, 2013 – Louis Dreyfus Commodities LLC today inaugurated a state of the art grain and oilseed export elevator at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge, Louisiana, following construction, expansion and upgrades to the facility worth a total of USD 150 million.
The new elevator is designed to handle up to 5 million metric tons of grains and oilseeds annually during the first phase of its operation. These volumes are estimated to rise to more than 6 million metric tons after all planned improvements have been completed. A significant part of the products will be sourced from the farm communities immediately surrounding Baton Rouge, and the terminal will employ up to 60 staff when running at full capacity.
“Port Allen will be our flagship export facility on the Mississippi River and a major part of our North American export program, bringing local products to world markets” said Mikael Mörn, CEO of Louis Dreyfus Commodities for North America, speaking at the inauguration ceremony. “We will start moving product immediately through the terminal, and are positioning ourselves to sustain and expand our leading presence within the grains and oilseeds export landscape in the US.”
Further improvements are planned over the next 2-3 years, adding highly efficient storage and inbound logistics capabilities to optimize the handling capacity and efficiency of the export operations.
The office of the Governor of the State of Louisiana, the Louisiana Farm Bureau, the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and the Port of Greater Baton Rouge are some of the partners who have actively contributed to the success of the project to date.