OTTAWA — With a raft of conditions, the Canadian government has given the green light to Bunge’s 18-month-old deal to merge with fellow agribusiness giant Viterra.

Anita Anand, minister of transport and internal trade, late on Jan. 14 announced Canada’s approval of the $18 billion transaction, under which Bunge Global SA plans to acquire Viterra Ltd. However, Anand noted that the government’s decision “comes with extensive terms and conditions” to safeguard competition in Canada and secure benefits for the nation’s economy.

In particular, the Canadian government aims to prevent the planned merger from infringing on competition in the country’s grain and oilseed sector — namely, grain purchasing in Western Canada and the sale of canola oil in Central and Atlantic Canada, according to Transport Canada.

Among the conditions, Canada is calling on Bunge to divest six grain elevators in Western Canada to maintain competitive balance for farmers in the region, as well as to retain Viterra’s head office in Regina, Sask., for at least five years to help “protect Canadian jobs.”

To uphold fair pricing and market stability, the government said it also is requiring a price protection program “for certain purchasers of canola oil” in Central and Atlantic Canada, along with “strict and legally binding controls” on Bunge’s minority ownership stake in G3, a Winnipeg, Man.-based operator of grain elevators and export terminals, to ensure Bunge “cannot influence G3’s pricing or investment decisions.”

Canada also seeks a binding commitment from Bunge to invest at least $520 million in the nation within the next five years and has laid out more than 20 other conditions aimed at enhancing the public’s benefits from the acquisition of Viterra.

According to Transport Canada, the conditions applied to clearance of the merger transaction give farmers “a wide range of competitive options” when selling canola and other crops and enable them to “continue to receive fair prices” for their produce.

“This decision underscores the importance of promoting economic growth in Canada, while maintaining robust oversight to protect competition and the public interest,” Anand said. “We are committed to supporting a strong economy, including in the agricultural and transportation sectors.”

Transport Canada said the conditions address concerns raised about the Bunge-Viterra merger deal during the public assessment period required under the Canada Transportation Act. In late April 2024, Canada’s Competition Bureau said it concluded that Bunge’s proposed acquisition of Viterra is “likely to result in substantial anticompetitive effects” and a “significant loss” in Bunge and Viterra’s competition in Canadian agricultural markets. The bureau’s report then was passed to the minister of transport for review.

St. Louis-based Bunge Global SA unveiled the agreement to acquire Rotterdam, The Netherlands-based Viterra, owned by Switzerland-based commodity trading giant Glencore PLC since 2012, back in mid-June 2023 after weeks of media buzz about a potential combination of the two agribusiness companies. Under the deal, approved by both companies’ boards, Viterra shareholders are slated to receive about 65.6 million shares of Bunge stock, valued at about $6.2 billion, and roughly $2 billion in cash, with Bunge also assuming $9.8 billion of Viterra’s debt.