Friday May 6, 2005 - GOLDEN Hope Plantations Bhd will use Unimills BV,the leading vegetable oil refiner in Europe, as a launching pad forfurther expansion in Europe.

Unimills managing director Jan van Driel said the bulk of Unimills'production catered to the European market, which had been expanded to 26countries including the new Eastern European countries that were nowmembers of the European Union.

'The European market contributes about 85% of our sales, and the rest ofthe world accounts for the balance," he said in an interview at thecompany's headquarters in Zwijndrecht, near Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

Elaborating on Unimills' push in Europe, van Driel said the opening up ofnew countries in the Eastern bloc had effectively expanded the company’smarket.

At the same time, recent changes requiring European Union countries toensure that vegetable-based oil comprises a minimum 5.75% of total fuelconsumed by 2010, would provide more opportunities for the company in thefuture.

'The new rules on fuel means that Europe will have a ready market for atleast 1.5 milllion litres annually for bio-diesel fuel," van Driel said,adding that the company would not be supplying all the requirements, butwas gearing up to be one of the main suppliers.

Jan Van Driel at Unimill's manufacturing facility near Rotterdam.

Unimills has an annual production capacity of 500,000 tonnes and producesmore than 250 vegetable oils and fats for use in foodstuff, technicalapplications and as high-grade feedstuff.

'It has yet to produce bio-diesel products but would be able to modifyexisting facilities to support production. “We have ample land to build anew refinery, should the demand for these products increase in future," hesaid.

Golden Hope acquired Unimills four years ago to be closer to its maincustomer in Europe. The move appears to have borne fruit, given therapidly expanding market in Europe for vegetable oils and fats.

Unimills, which has a track record of more than 90 years, recentlycompleted the construction of a 4mil euro (RM20mil) boiler, which couldboost its production capacity significantly. The new facility will beofficially opened by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, whowill be on an official visit to the Netherlands later this month.

Unimills' facility is not the only Malaysian-owned refinery in theNetherlands. IOI Corp Bhd and the Kerry group controlled by tycoon Tan SriRobert Kuok have also made significant inroads. IOI Corp, through LodersCroklaan and the Kerry group are building new facilities nearby. Whenoperational, the new refineries will increase the total annual refinerycapacity in the Netherlands to more than three million tonnes.

According to van Driel, Rotterdam is attractive to refinery activitiesmainly due to its proximity to consumers across Europe and the excellenttransportation network.

"Refining fat is a low-margin business and the location of the facilitiesis one of the key factors that drive profitability," said van Driel.

He believes Unimills' main strength lies in the company’s knowledge of themarket as well as its excellent links with its parent company Golden Hope,which supplies its main raw material - palm oil.

"We even know which tree the oil comes from and that provides comfort toour clients, who have to answer to their customers with regards to theorigin of certain food items," he said.

In fact, this factor is important for food businesses in Europe, which arefacing high demand from consumers for more information on their foodproducts.

Unimills is a member of the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oilproduction, which monitors the sustainability of palm oil production amongothers.

"We have a very close relationship with our clients," van Driel said,adding that this relationship often meant that the company would have totailor its products to suit clients' requirements.

Van Driel said Unimills' manufacturing facilities also had to comply withthe strict Jewish standard or kosher, thus allowing the product to accessa much wider market.

"We are also constantly developing new products to suit customer demands,"he said.

He added that the company would also be able to meet some of the moststrict dietary requirements.