Cargill to invest $20m to upgrade palm oil facility

Cargill has announced that it is investing $20 million to expand and modernise its palm oil production facility in Port Klang, Malaysia.

The project includes upgrading equipment and adding new production technologies, and research and development (R&D) capabilities.

Cargill says that with the improvements, the facility will be able to produce significantly more oils, particularly value-added special palm products.

Customers from across a range of sectors – including confectionery, bakery and specialised nutrition – are expected to benefit from reduced turnaround times as a result of the upgrades to the plant’s operations.

With the investment at Port Klang, Cargill aims to provide customers with a ‘one-stop-shop solution’ for palm products.

The first phase of the project involves moving the production of all lauric oils to another Cargill facility, in order to open up capacity at Port Klang for palm processing.

The second phase consists of upgrading the physical refining plant and palm oil fractionation process at the Port Klang site.

“This investment to expand and modernise our facility in Port Klang enables us to provide high-quality, value-added specialty palm solutions and advanced R&D capabilities for customers in a variety of market segments,” said Gonzalo Petschen, president for Cargill’s global edible oil business.

“By strengthening our assets in the region, we are reinforcing our commitment to our employees and the Port Klang community.”

Xiuling Guo, managing director for Cargill’s edible oil business in Asia, added: “We are very committed to growing our business in the Asia Pacific region. This is a critical step to better serve our customers with sustainable and reliable solutions to address consumer needs.”

Cargill has recently announced that it is investing $100 million in its facility in Pandaan, Indonesia, in order to meet demand for corn-based starches, sweeteners and animal feed ingredients.