<p data-path-to-node="2"><b data-path-to-node="2" data-index-in-node="0">ABU DHABI / SÃO PAULO</b> — In a milestone transaction that marks the largest cross-border corporate takeover in its corporate history and establishes a strategic beachhead in the Western Hemisphere, AD Ports Group has formally closed its AED 3.1 billion ($835 million) acquisition of Corredor Logística e Infraestrutura (CLI), one of Brazil’s premier independent agricultural bulk terminal and supply chain logistics operators.</p><p data-path-to-node="3">The transaction closed following unconditional antitrust and regulatory approvals from Brazil’s Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) and the National Waterway Transportation Agency (ANTAQ).</p><p data-path-to-node="4">With the legal and financial transfer completed, AD Ports Group has assumed operational control of CLI through its international terminal management arm, Noatum Ports. The acquisition was executed from seller consortium funds managed by Macquarie Asset Management and IG4 Capital, with CLI’s established executive leadership team retained to oversee localized operations across South America.</p><p data-path-to-node="5">The takeover surpasses AD Ports Group’s previous foreign M&amp;A benchmarks—including its AED 2.65 billion acquisition of Spain-based logistics group Noatum in 2023 and its controlling stake expansion in Global Feeder Shipping (GFS)—establishing the Abu Dhabi entity as an emerging global port and intermodal operator across four continents.</p><p data-path-to-node="6">CLI controls a concession portfolio across Brazil’s most vital agricultural export gateways, handling an aggregate of over 17 million metric tonnes of agri-bulk products annually:</p><ul data-path-to-node="7"><li><p data-path-to-node="7,0,0"><b data-path-to-node="7,0,0" data-index-in-node="0">CLI Sul at the Port of Santos:</b> Situated in Latin America’s largest deepwater seaport, CLI operates an 80% controlling concession in CLI Sul, recognized as Brazil's single largest dedicated sugar export terminal. The multi-berth facility features high-throughput enclosed conveyor galleries and automated ship loaders capable of handling vast export volumes of raw sugar, export grain, soybeans, and corn.</p></li><li><p data-path-to-node="7,1,0"><b data-path-to-node="7,1,0" data-index-in-node="0">CLI Norte at the Port of Itaqui (Maranhão):</b> CLI holds 100% ownership of CLI Norte, an asset anchored in Brazil’s strategic "Arc of the North" export fairway. Tapping the agricultural output of the Matopiba agricultural frontier and Amazon basin basins via direct rail connectivity, Itaqui offers deepwater drafts accommodating Capesize bulk carriers with fast ocean sailing times toward Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern corridors.</p></li></ul><p data-path-to-node="8">Historically, agricultural supply chains connecting South American breadbaskets to consumption markets in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia faced severe transactional friction. Cargoes passed through multiple non-aligned trading houses, third-party charter brokers, and unintegrated terminal operators, exposing food-importing nations to elevated ocean spot charter premiums, vessel queuing surcharges, and landside demurrage spikes during peak grain harvesting seasons.</p><p data-path-to-node="9">By bringing CLI’s deepwater berths directly into its corporate ecosystem, AD Ports Group establishes an integrated farm-to-fork commodity pipeline. The strategic objective focuses on creating a direct, high-volume maritime conveyor linking Brazilian agri-bulk terminals straight to Khalifa Port and the Abu Dhabi Food Hub located within the Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD). From KEZAD’s bonded processing hubs, bulk grains, unrefined sugar, and edible oils will be processed, stored, and re-exported across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), East Africa, and the Indian Subcontinent.</p><p data-path-to-node="10">The transaction directly complements ongoing bilateral economic diplomacy. The UAE and Brazil have deepened trade ties through double taxation treaties, accelerated negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the Emirates and the Mercosur trade bloc, and expanded sovereign investment portfolios across Latin America.</p><p data-path-to-node="11">Senior executive leadership at Noatum Ports affirmed that integrating CLI delivers immediate economies of scale. By combining Brazil's agricultural output with Abu Dhabi's maritime infrastructure, automated logistics zones, and regional feeder shipping networks, AD Ports Group is securing long-term food supply corridors while driving commercial cargo flows between the Americas, the Middle East, and Asia.</p>