At the same time, it signed a manufacturing supply agreement with an unnamed multinational category leader for manufacturing, blending and packing of nutritional products.
Further capital development worth $70 million over two years will be required at Pokeno and the nearby South Auckland site, chair Graeme Milne says.
Manufacturing for the new customers is scheduled to begin in mid-2022.
“This is the start of a valuable, enduring, strategic partnership that gives us broader market and category exposure in Asia Pacific,” chief executive Leon Clement said.
Further details are confidential although the agreement does include plant-based products.
Settlement with Ye was for an undisclosed sum that was reasonable and not material, Synlait announced.
The dispute over historic land covenants was before the Supreme Court, which had yet to publish a ruling, and the court had been advised of the settlement.
Ye says he had plans to develop a quarry alongside the Pokeno plant and he is also managing director of GMP Pharmaceuticals, which blends and packs infant formula in competition to Synlait.
