Kernel, Ukraine’s leading agricultural group, is working on acquiring 100% of Enselco Holding Limited, an agricultural holding controlled by Kernel’s board chairman and majority shareholder, Andriy Verevsky, for almost $350 million.
According to Latifundist, a leading Ukrainian agribusiness media holding company, the total value of the transaction is $348 million, including a 5% discount below an independent market valuation of $366 million.
The deal brings assets previously sold by Kernel back under its corporate umbrella. In 2023, Kernel sold the agricultural holding to Verevsky for $210 million.
Since then, Enselco has integrated additional assets by acquiring the Agro Region group from Ukraine’s former Lithuanian-born economy and trade minister, Aivaras Abromavicius, in January 2026. After that, the holding’s land bank grew from 134,000 hectares in 2022 to 190,000 hectares in 2026.
Of the total $348 million, Kernel will pay $300 million immediately upon signing the agreement, with the remaining balance due by the end of June 2026. Latifundist stated that the company’s directors approved the price with no conflict of interest, as Verevsky abstained from the vote.
The acquisition aims to capitalize on Ukraine’s recovering export capabilities, Enselco explained in the press release. Yevgen Osypov, Kernel’s CEO, explained that the stability of the Black Sea export corridor provided the confidence needed to expand agricultural assets.
“Soil becomes a scarce resource, and companies that combine agricultural production, technology, processing, and logistics have stronger market positions,” Osypov is quoted via Enselco`s press release. “Consolidating Enselco and Kernel into a single structure allows us to achieve maximum scale in agricultural production management.”
Enselco returns to the Kernel structure with additional capabilities
According to Enselco’s website, the holding started in 2010 as two separate grain and seed oil enterprises: Enselco Agro LLC in the Khmelnytskyi region and Agropolis in the Ternopil region. The following year, they joined Kernel to form the Western Cluster. In 2023, these assets were spun off from Kernel creating the Enselco Group of Companies.
Since then, it expanded into a group that includes Enselco Agro; Agropolis Group of Companies, which specializes in producing butter, spreads, and skimmed milk powder; PSP AF Bilozirska, which grows cereals, vegetables, and oil seeds; and the recently absorbed Agro Region.
The Anti-monopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) approved the acquisition of nine agricultural companies from Agro Region by Cyprus-based Kapenata Limited, a firm linked to Enselco Agro controlled by Kernel founder Andriy Verevsky in January 2026. The deal meant a signal to the market that large-scale consolidation in Ukraine’s agricultural sector is resuming despite the war.
At the time of sale, Enselco cultivates 190,000 hectares of leased land, has its own network of elevators, agricultural machinery and equipment, a fleet of grain trucks, as well as other assets.
Expanding the Kernel’s assets
Founded in 1995, Kernel Holding S.A. has grown into one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of sunflower oil, making around 8% of global production. The holding supplies goods to more than 60 countries, the overall land bank included about 600,000 hectares before the Enselco deal. While its core business remains focused on its vast land bank, the company diversified into energy and maritime logistics.
The holding invested $215 million in renewable energy and operates biomass power plants, including two 70 MW facilities each, with another 30 MW plant under construction in Starokostiantyniv, according to Forbes Ukraine. The company also plans to build solar power plants to cover its internal needs.
The agricultural holding bought three vessels in 2023 to ensure export stability. While Kernel sold one bulk carrier, the Eneida, in 2024, it still owns the bulk carrier Rotterdam and the tanker Mavka.
Kernel also strengthened its “field-to-port” supply chain. In 2024, the group expanded its port infrastructure by acquiring two oil transshipment terminals in the ports of Reni and Chornomorsk for $25 million and $19 million, respectively, Forbes Ukraine stated.
The company invested $278 million to launch the Starokostiantyniv oil extraction facility in 2024, which is capable of processing 1 million tons of sunflower seeds annually.
In early 2025, Kernel initiated a mandatory squeeze-out and sell-out process under Luxembourg law. This allowed Andriy Verevsky’s Namsen Limited to consolidate 94.37% of the holding’s shares, gaining control by purchasing remaining stakes from minority investors.
Kernel’s net profit for the first half of the 2026 FY (fiscal year) – covering July to December 2025 – fell by 33% year-on-year to $119 million, Interfax-Ukraine reported.