By Alex Benzegala
Panhandle Post
On Wednesday, Legacy Cooperative ("Legacy") and West Plains LLC ("West Plains") announced that they have agreed that Legacy is to acquire seven of the grain handling locations in the Nebraska Panhandle.
The locations include Alliance, Berea, Chadron, Hay Springs, Merriman, Clinton NE and Batesland SD.
A press release states that the transaction is slated to close on June 1st, with all open storage and to-arrive grain purchase contracts at the affected locations being assigned to Legacy. Legacy said that they expect to retain all local employees and will continue normal operations.
West Plains will continue to focus on growth in its remaining assets in Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming.
Charlie Wright, Legacy CEO says the acquisition will strengthen the core of their core grain handling business and will also provide increased providing market access to their growers.
"We are eager to welcome the local West Plains staff to our team and will work diligently with our customers to make this transition as smooth as possible,” Wright said.
Amit Bhandari, CEO of West Plains says that selling assets in Alliance is an opportunity for the company to expand market presence.
"We believe that the sale of our Alliance assets to Legacy Cooperative, Inc. presents an opportunity for both companies to focus on their core strengths. This strategic move will enable West Plains to concentrate on expanding our market presence and capitalizing on our remaining core operating activities, ensuring sustained growth and success in the future."