The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has granted a loan to Ukrainian agro holding Astarta.

The approval is for a two-year working capital loan of $10m to support its operations.

It is an extension of the working capital facility agreed in 2018.

Astarta is one of the largest vertically integrated agro-industrial holdings in Ukraine and a long-standing client of EBRD.

The Ukrainian company operates more than 230,000ha of arable farmland, sugar plants, a soybean processing factory and dairy farms.

The loan will support the launch of precision farming.

By incorporating the new agricultural technologies, the company aims to improve crop yields and reduce the use of mineral fertilisers by 15%.

Additionally, the company will offer specialised training to sector experts.

As the largest international financial investor in Ukraine, EBRD has so far agreed to almost €15bn cumulative commitment via 466 projects in the country.

Last month, EBRD agreed to provide a loan of $10m to Ukraine’s tomato paste producer Agrofusion Group.

The finance will meet the company’s temporary increased working capital requirements and help it to deal with the challenges created by the pandemic. It will use it for delayed customer payments and higher operating costs.

Agrofusion is the third-largest producer of tomato in Europe, which exports more than 72% of its produce to 45 countries across the world.