AD Ports Group Acquires CLI, Brazil’s Leading Agri-Bulk ‎Port Terminal Operator, for over AED 3 Billion

• Acquisition to expand AD Ports Group’s geographic footprint into South America, and ‎strengthen its growing agrifood business vertical
• AD Ports Group aims to establish new trade routes directly linking Brazil to Khalifa ‎Port and Abu Dhabi Food Hub, the region’s largest food hub in KEZAD
• CLI operates two of Brazil’s most important sugar and grain export terminals at the ‎Port of Itaqui and Port of Santos
• AED 3.1 billion (USD 835 million) purchase of CLI is the largest-ever M&A transaction ‎conducted by AD Ports Group

São Paulo, Brazil, and Abu Dhabi, UAE – 2nd June 2026: AD Ports Group (ADX: ‎ADPORTS), a leading global enabler of trade, industry, and logistics solutions, today ‎acquired Corredor Logística e Infraestrutura (CLI), Brazil’s leading independent agri-‎bulk port terminal operator, entering the South American market with a strategically ‎major expansion transaction.‎

São Paulo-based CLI operates two of Brazil’s most important agri-bulk export ‎terminals under long-term concessions: CLI Sul, Brazil’s leading sugar export terminal ‎and key export terminal for corn and soybeans, located in the Port of Santos; and CLI ‎Norte, another key grains gateway at the Port of Itaqui, which is part of the Brazilian ‎‎‘Arc of the North’, an essential geographical region encompassing the Amazon basin ‎that is a pivotal logistics hub and significant emerging corridor for agriculture exports.‎

In 2025, ports and terminals in northern Brazil recorded the fastest growth in the ‎country, reinforcing the strategic role of the “Arc of the North’ corridor in reshaping the ‎nation’s logistics map.‎

The two terminals play a key role in connecting the producing regions of Brazil, the ‎world’s leading sugar exporter and one of the largest grain exporters, to the world.‎

AD Ports Group agreed to acquire CLI from joint owners Macquarie Asset ‎Management, and IG4 Capital. CLI owns 100% of CLI Norte, which operates a ‎terminal at the Port of Itaqui, and 80% of CLI Sul, which operates a terminal at the ‎Port of Santos.‎

The transaction, which is expected to be completed in the second half of the year ‎subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory and antitrust approval, ‎was conducted at an enterprise value of AED 3.1 billion (USD 835 million). ‎

It has also been agreed that CLI’s existing senior management team will remain in ‎place to continue running the company.‎
The CLI acquisition represents a transformative step for AD Ports Group, positioning ‎it as one of South America’s leading independent agri-bulk terminal operators, with ‎strategic access to a vast new number of opportunities for the Group’s associated ‎businesses of maritime and shipping, logistics, economic cities, and digital services.‎

Captain Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, Managing Director & Group CEO of AD ‎Ports Group, said: “The purchase of CLI is a game changer for AD Ports Group. ‎The transaction extends our Group’s international reach for the first time into Latin ‎America, and deepens our growing agrifoods activities, one of our core verticals. ‎Under the wise guidance of our leadership in the United Arab Emirates, AD Ports ‎Group is committed to enabling trade in one of the world’s most-important, fastest-‎growing agricultural commodities markets, which will not only benefit the Group’s ‎global clients, including those in Brazil, but also strengthen the AD Ports Group global ‎network.”‎

Brazil supports AD Ports Group’s geographic expansion as well as the Group’s plan ‎to develop a major new East-West trade spoke linking South America’s largest ‎economy to the Indian Subcontinent, East Africa and Southeast Asia. The UAE is in ‎advanced negotiations with Mercosur, the South American trading bloc that includes ‎Brazil, to establish a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. Emirati ‎investments in Brazil are estimated to be approximately USD 5 billion in total, ‎according to the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The two countries maintain a highly ‎active strategic partnership, having signed a Double Taxation Agreement and ‎eliminated various tax and investment barriers to boost bilateral business.‎

Fernando Lohmann, Head of Macquarie Asset Management in Brazil, said: ‎‎“Brazil’s agricultural export sector continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience, ‎reinforcing the country’s position as one of the world’s leading suppliers of agricultural ‎commodities. As a long-term investor in the country, Macquarie remains committed to ‎acting as a responsible custodian of essential infrastructure assets that help drive ‎economic development, improve connectivity and support Brazil’s role in global trade ‎and we believe AD Ports Group is ideally positioned to support CLI’s next phase of ‎growth.” ‎

Paulo Todescan L. Mattos, Co-Founder, Managing Partner, and CEO of IG4 ‎Capital, said: Since becoming shareholders in CLI, our focus has been on ‎strengthening the company’s operational capabilities, expanding its strategic footprint, ‎and positioning the platform to capture the long-term growth of Brazil’s agri-bulk ‎export sector. We believe AD Ports Group is the right strategic owner to build on this ‎foundation, bringing global trade expertise, infrastructure capabilities, and a long-term ‎vision that will support CLI’s continued growth and development.”‎

The purchase of CLI gives AD Ports Group an entry point into Latin America, and a ‎platform for further regional expansion. Moreover, the agrifood sector is a priority ‎vertical in the Group’s intelligent internationalisation expansion strategy, with several ‎key investments made in that space recently.‎

In December 2025, the Group’s Karachi Gateway Multipurpose Terminal Ltd. ‎‎(KGTML) and the Pakistan unit of global merchant and agricultural goods processor ‎Louis Dreyfus Company signed a long-term agreement to develop a clean bulk ‎handling and storage facility for agricultural goods at Karachi Port. In January 2025, ‎the Group agreed to invest about USD 30 million in the greenfield Sarzha Grain ‎Terminal on the Caspian Sea at Kuryk Port in Kazakhstan and earlier this year, the ‎Group secured a 30-year concession to operate the Aqaba multipurpose port in ‎Jordan, which is a key player in agri-bulk in the Middle East with over 3 million tonnes ‎of grains handled annually. Moreover, Noatum Ports’ Spanish operations are already ‎significantly involved in agri-bulk with the Tarragona and Sagunto terminals handling ‎around 2 million tonnes of grain imports annually and with an additional investment of ‎AED 90 million (EUR 21 million) announced recently for modernising existing facilities ‎at the Tarragona terminal. ‎

In 2025, CLI handled a combined 17 million tonnes of agri-bulk cargo and delivered a ‎revenue of AED 654 million (USD 178 million), generating an EBITDA of AED 360 ‎million (USD 98 million).‎

CLI operates one of Brazil’s few large-scale, agri-bulk port platforms, strategically ‎located along export corridors and ports. The ports of Santos and Itaqui are ‎structurally constrained, particularly in Santos, where limited expansion capacity and ‎chronic congestion are expected to underpin long-term utilisation and pricing ‎resilience.‎

Long-term demand for the Group’s Brazilian terminals is also supported by Brazil’s ‎global leadership and the strategic importance of the country’s grain and sugar ‎exports. Brazil is the world’s largest sugar exporters, accounting for 40-50% of total ‎global sugar exports, according to industry figures, and a leader in soybeans, coffee, ‎and corn.‎

The purchase of CLI is AD Ports Group’s largest acquisition to date following the ‎Group’s AED 2.65 billion (USD 720 million) purchase of Spain’s Noatum in 2023, and ‎its AED 1.9 billion (USD 510 million) purchase of a 51% stake in Dubai-based Global ‎Feeder Shipping (GFS) in early 2024.‎
For the transaction, AD Ports Group was advised by BTG Pactual, while IG4 and ‎Macquarie Asset Management were advised by Citi.‎