Sugar industry consulting services & strategic analysis
Sugar industry consulting services and strategic analysis
ProSunergy provides strategic, advisory and implementation services for sugar, sugar-based renewable energy and biofuel industries worldwide.
For investors - managers - governments
For
Investors
Managers
Governments
Few clients, exclusive engagements
Because of the strategic nature of its advice and implementation work, ProSunergy provides support to few clients, each in an exclusive and medium to long-term format. As a result, each client receives focused attention to the specific issues at hand, whilst benefiting from the distinctive strategic advantage of using unique resources.
Industry focus
Sugar, ethanol, and bio-energy only.
Trade knowledge
Extensive and profound knowledge of the trade.
Time per clients
Very few clients, each given sustained attention.
Absolute discretion
Confidentiality at every stage.
Industry focus
Sugar, ethanol, and bio-energy only
"Picking the right analysis, asset and investment path for each client is what ProSunergy does the best"
Services
What ProSunergy does for its clients
01
Strategic analysis
Strategic analysis for companies operating in the sugar, electricity and renewable-fuels industries.
02
Investments, merges & acquisitions
Identifying, evaluating and organising investments — from agricultural operations and mills, to logistics and sales.
- Analysis of, and reporting on, existing and developing investment opportunities.
- Identification, evaluation and organization of investments, mergers and acquisitions, in agricultural operations, industrial production, logistics and sales.
-
Search for equity co-investors and debt-providers for investment opportunities identified by ProSunergy.
03
Regulatory frameworks
Analysis and design of regulatory frameworks conducive to the development of a robust sugar and ethanol sector.
04
Implementation support
Transaction negotiations, and assistance in recruiting key manager.
- Assistance to the client in transaction negotiations.
- Assistance in finding the resources, managers, technical experts or legal counsel needed to implement a client’s strategy.
Where
Worldwide experience
ProSunergy has extensive experience in North and South America, Europe, Africa and Australia, but also strong knowledge of major Asian sugar and ethanol issues.
North America - South America - Europe - Africa - Australia - Asia
Strategic Analysis explained
"What is strategic is structural, it can be changed neither quickly nor cheaply"
The aim of strategy analysis is to discover and quantify the levers which drive the financial results of a business over the long run.
Sugar and ethanol
Competition is on cost. The main factors are:
Feedstock price
Delivered to the mill
Mill size
Daily crushing capacity and campaign length
Logistics
Feedstock and finished products
Regulations
Agricultural and trade policies
Thus, main structural factors are geographic in nature.
Every company has a strategy
Every company has a strategy because every company operates within a set of structural constraints. Some of these conditions it chooses (whether or not to own its distribution network, for example). Others, however, come the environment (a new technology appears, or exchange-rate risk management is key to results). Importantly, strategy is not more important than operational performance: poor operations or a poor strategy can impact a company’s financial standing equally.
Discovering the rules of the game
To explain what strategy analysis is, consider how a strategy analyst would go about understanding a card game: by observing the players at length, he would hope to discover the rules. In business, this means immersing oneself in an industry: who are the competitors, the suppliers, the customers? What assets do they own and run? Which competitor has the best financial returns over time? Often, comparing the “best in breed” with the others reveals these levers and how best to play them.
Business acumen
The value a strategy consultant brings is in revealing the relative impact of each structural element, thereby making a company’s resource allocation decisions more effective. Furthermore, good business strategic analysis requires more than the mechanistic application of game rules: it requires an understanding of the physical and psychological forces which underpin the accumulation of wealth. In short, it requires business acumen.

Founder
Patrick Chatenay
Through 40 years of experience in managerial, analytical, and board-level roles in various regulatory environments in different countries, Patrick has acquired a deep understanding of sugar industry issues.
Executive Board member
Saint Louis Sucre, France
Assistant Managing Director
Azucarera Ebro, Spain
Governance Committee Chair
Alteo Limited, Miwa Sugar Limited
Founder
ProSunergy
Insights
Analyses by Patrick Chatenay

Reference analysis
Investing in sugar
A short introduction
Investing in the sugar industry requires a careful understanding of agricultural economics, industrial performance, market dynamics and government policy. Despite its capital-intensive nature and long payback periods, the sector offers opportunities for long-term investors when projects are properly structured and managed.
Topics : success rules, economic development, investing in Sub-Saharan Africa

Reference analysis
Sugar asset resilience
In sugar industry, the past matters
Sugar asset resilience is rooted in the long lifespan of industrial equipment and the gradual evolution of sugar production technologies. In a capital-intensive industry, factories can remain productive for decades, making asset durability a defining feature of long-term investment in the sugar sector.
Topics : industrial asset longevity, sugar production technology, industrial productivity, economies of scale...

Reference analysis
Does the EU Know It Is Killing Its Sugar Industry?
EU sugar industry policy
The European sugar industry faces growing pressure from trade agreements, preferential imports and changing agricultural policies. In this article, Patrick Chatenay examines how EU regulations influence the financial sustainability of domestic sugar production and questions whether current policies are compatible with maintaining a viable European sugar industry.
Topics : EU sugar policy, international trade, sugar industry sustainability
Discuss a project with ProSunergy
A question about the sugar industry, an investment or a strategic issue ? Write us
