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Dec 15, 2021, 13 tweets

Welcome to On a Date with a listed company on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE).

Dating is a critical stage to any investor considering to take a position on any asset class even shares.

THREAD: On a Date with Hippo Valley Estates

#1. History,

1956, a citrus estate is established.

1959, the 1st sugarcane crop is planted on the estate.

1964, listing on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE).

1975, estate initiates irrigation programs to water the sugar plantation.

2006, Anglo American Corporation sell off its 50.4% stake in Hippo Valley Estates for USD$36,0000,000.

The buyer is Triangle Sugar Corporation which is wholly owned by the JSE listed sugar producer Tongaat Hulett.

Therefore Tongaat Hulett controls Triangle Limited and Hippo Valley.

The 2 sugar producers own a 50-50 equity in Mkwasine Estates.

These form Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe's assets.

#2. Operations,

Hippo Valley Estates is a sugar producer located in the Southeastern lowveld of Zimbabwe near Chiredzi.

It operates at close proximity to Triangle Limited its sister and they focus on,

1. Sugarcane Farming
2. Sugarcane Milling
3. Packaging

Farming

12,000 hectares of sugarcane are managed.

15,000 hectares of sugarcane managed by Triangle.

20,000 hectares of sugarcane are managed by +1,100 out growers.

Climate, soils and established irrigation systems make it ideal for sugar production.

Milling

There are two mills at Hippo Valley and Triangle.

The mills have a combined installed capacity to process 4,8 million tonnes of sugarcane per year.

640K tons of raw sugar are produced from the sugarcane. A refining capacity of 140K tons/year.

#3. Products

Brown Sugar,

White Sugar,

Molasses,

Ethanol,

Triangle Limited operation is the only one with the capacity to produce ethanol.

It can produce +30,000,000 litres of ethanol per year which is used in blending petrol.

#4. Customers,

Zimbabwe Sugar Sales (ZSS)

Is an affiliate business which acts as a broker to the sugar millers in selling brown sugar.

Starafrica Co

The sole sugar refinery in Zimbabwe relies heavily on raw sugar from Hippo to produce white sugar & other

#5. Interests

49% stake in NCP Distillers a joint venture with Astra Chemical.

32.56% stake in Tokwane Consortium which maintains the Tokwane barrage and canal.

33.3% stake in Sugar Industries which packs and distribute refined sugar in Botswana.

#6. Shareholding

50.32% is controlled by Triangle Sugar Corporation a wholly owned subsidiary of Tongaat Hulett.

12.32% owned by Old Mutual Life Assurance Company.

10.01% owned by Tate and Lyle Holland BV a global supplier of food and beverage ingredients

#7. Share Price

284.63 ZWL per share as at Dec 15

90.17 ZWL per share at the start of the year

216% gained to date

35th on ZSE ranking according to year to date performance

33rd most traded stock in the past 3 months to Dec 15

193,020,564 shares issued.

#8. Pitch

A monopolistic business is great invest case as it can achieve abnormal profits.

Institutional offer letter was issued by the Government giving tenure to the land.

The lowveld has conditions that help Hippo to become a competitive producer.

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