Abu Dhabi’s AD Ports Buys Into Brazil Grain Terminals in Record Deal
BRAZIL · BUSINESS
Key Facts
—The deal. Abu Dhabi’s AD Ports Group agreed to buy control of CLI, a Brazilian grain-and-sugar port-terminal operator, for around R$4.2bn ($835m).
—A record. The transaction is AD Ports’ largest acquisition ever, and marks its entry into Brazil.
—The sellers. Private-equity firm IG4 Capital and Australia’s Macquarie are exiting; IG4 reportedly made about four times its dollar investment, Macquarie about twice.
—The assets. CLI runs grain and sugar terminals at the ports of Santos and Itaqui; in 2025 it moved 17 million tonnes of bulk agricultural cargo, with $178m in revenue and $98m in core earnings.
—Still pending. The deal requires customary approvals, including from Brazil’s antitrust authority and its waterway-transport regulator.
A Gulf port giant has chosen Brazil for the biggest acquisition in its history — a bet on the country’s central role in feeding global commodity markets.
A record deal for Brazilian grain terminals
AD Ports Group, the ports-and-logistics company controlled by Abu Dhabi, has agreed to acquire control of Corredor Logística e Infraestrutura — known as CLI — a Brazilian operator of grain and sugar terminals, in a transaction valued at around R$4.2bn ($835m). The deal is the largest acquisition in AD Ports’ history and marks the Gulf group’s entry into Brazil. The sellers are the private-equity manager IG4 Capital and Australia’s Macquarie Asset Management, which had jointly controlled CLI on a 50/50 basis; according to the reporting, IG4 secured roughly four times its dollar investment and Macquarie about twice.
What CLI brings
CLI is one of Brazil’s leading independent operators of agricultural-export infrastructure, with terminals at the ports of Santos, the country’s largest, and Itaqui in the north. The business handled 17 million tonnes of bulk agricultural cargo in 2025, generating $178m in revenue and $98m in adjusted core earnings. Through the deal, AD Ports also gains indirect control of CLI’s southern arm, in which the Brazilian company holds an 80% stake. For AD Ports, the assets slot into an “agrifood” strategy and a push to be present along the supply chains that move soy, corn and sugar from producing regions to export markets.
Why Abu Dhabi is betting on Brazil
The logic is Brazil’s weight in global agriculture. As one of the world’s biggest exporters of soy, sugar and other commodities, the country offers Gulf buyers a strategic foothold in food supply chains at a time of heightened focus on food security. The acquisition reflects a broader pattern of Middle Eastern capital flowing into Brazilian infrastructure and agribusiness, drawn by long-life, cash-generating assets tied to export demand. For AD Ports specifically, owning the terminals — rather than simply shipping through them — deepens its position in a trade it already touches through its global port network.
More: Brazil news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
What happens next
The transaction still depends on customary closing conditions, including clearance from Brazil’s antitrust authority and its waterway-transport regulator. For IG4 and Macquarie, the sale caps a multi-year investment that began when they assembled CLI’s terminal portfolio, including assets acquired from the rail operator Rumo at the port of Santos. For Brazil, the entry of a major Gulf operator into its export-logistics backbone is a vote of confidence in the infrastructure that underpins the country’s commodity trade — and a sign that global investors continue to see value in the assets that move its harvests to the world.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did AD Ports buy?
Control of CLI, a Brazilian operator of grain and sugar terminals at the ports of Santos and Itaqui, for around R$4.2bn ($835m).
Why does it matter?
It is AD Ports’ largest-ever acquisition and its entry into Brazil, deepening Gulf investment in the country’s agricultural-export infrastructure.
Who sold, and how did they do?
IG4 Capital and Macquarie; IG4 reportedly made about four times its dollar investment and Macquarie about twice.
Is the deal final?
No. It still needs customary approvals, including from Brazil’s antitrust authority and its waterway-transport regulator.
Connected Coverage
For more on Brazil’s trade and markets, see our coverage of China clearing all of Brazil’s beef as disease-free and foreign investors pulling back from the B3.
This article was drafted with automated assistance and reviewed before publication. How we use AI · Report an error
Read More from The Rio Times