A fertile relationship
RESIDENTIAL and industrial developer Bisinella Developments has supported the growth of its longestrunning tenant as it evolved into a key base of operation for a leading supplier of fertilisers over the past 30 years.
One of the first businesses to establish in what is now as the Geelong Ring Road Employment Precinct, Impact Fertilisers’ Corio operation is its largest in Australia.
Originally Hi-Fert, the business started operating in Heales Rd on October 12, 1989.
Bisinella developed and expanded the Heales Rd complex in stages and the site now comprises more than 43,000sq m of warehousing and associated buildings, all built, owned and leased by Bisinella.
The Corio warehouses have the capacity to hold 100,000 tonnes of finished product.
Hi-Fert moved its head office from Adelaide to Melbourne following a major expansion of the Heales Rd facilities in 2007.
The managing director of Bisinella Developments, Lino Bisinella, said the company’s relationship with Impact Fertilisers had been significant for the Geelong economy.
“We have been able to support Impact by providing the land and constructing the new facilities to enable them to expand at Heales Rd,” Mr Bisinella said.
“The Geelong operation is now their largest in Australia and they are a key user of GeelongPort.”
GeelongPort chief executive Brett Winter said Impact Fertilisers continued to make an important contribution to the agribusiness sector, which was the region’s second largest exporter at $1.4 billion, accounting for 17 per cent of total exports.
The Impact Fertiliser Group, which completed its acquisition of Hi-Fert in 2011, is 100 per cent owned by privately owned Swiss international grain and fertiliser trader Ameropa.