United Arab Emirates company Al Dahra is close to taking over Romanian Braila Farming, the largest farmer in Romania that operates under concession contracts 56,000 hectares of land owned by the state in Insula Mare a Brailei (Big Island of Braila), Ziarul Financiar reported.

Abu Dhabi based Al Dahra owns or operates 200,000 acres of land worldwide (81,000 hectares), according to its own site. The acquisition of the Romanian farmer would mean an increase of nearly 70%.

The transaction will amount to more than €200mn, according to unofficial sources quoted by ZF.

Al Dahra has an annual turnover of $1bn. It is part of Al Ain Holding, founded by Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Al Dahra is active in agriculture — cereal cultivation, production and trading, with two divisions — animal and human food, namely rice, flour, fruit and vegetables. The company has grown strongly through global acquisitions and mergers, as reported on its website, and has been active in more than 20 markets.

Braila Farming is owned by the entrepreneur Constantin Duluţe. It operates nearly 56,000 hectares of land in the Big Island of Braila, making it the largest farm on the local market.

Romanian farmland is of increasing interest to international investors, which has raised concerns within the country, with lawmakers mulling legislation to limit such purchases. A European parliament study carried out in 2015 revealed that around 40% of agricultural land was owned by foreigners, mostly from other EU countries.