It looks like the grain giant created by the merger of Saskatchewan Wheat Pool and Agricore United will be calling Regina home.
But it will also have additional residences in Winnipeg and Calgary.
While the Pool is reluctant to use the term “head office,” it appears most of the new company’s business will be carried out from the company’s existing headquarters in Regina.
In a letter to employees last week, chief executive officer Mayo Schmidt announced that the company’s two biggest divisions – grain and agriproducts – will be located in Regina.That will involve the transfer of some former AU employees from Winnipeg to Regina.
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The information technology department will also operate out of Regina, while financial products will be based in Winnipeg.
Finance and human resources will have a presence in both cities, while the company’s treasury officials will be in Regina.
Regina has been officially listed as the location of the “registered business office” for the new company and Schmidt is likely to spend most of his time in Regina.
The CEO has said publicly the company also wants to have a significant presence in Calgary. No formal announcement has been made, but livestock and fertilizer operations are expected to be headquartered there.
In the July 19 letter to employees, Schmidt said the decision about where the company’s various business operations will be located is crucial to realizing the company’s projected savings of $90 million.
Much of those savings will come from job cuts for employees who decide not to move.
In the letter, Schmidt said the decisions aren’t based on favouritism for one company’s employees over the other’s.
“Our decisions are based on the advice of the integration teams who are working diligently to elevate the combined expertise of SWP and AU into a powerful new competitor in global agribusiness.”
