Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and state-owned Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (Salic) are among the lead bidders for a minority stake in the agriculture unit of Glencore, Bloomberg reported.

A Saudi joint stock company, Salic is owned by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia and aims to engage in the full supply chain for selected agricultural and livestock goods worldwide.

Salic manages its operations by deploying specialist know how of investments in agricultural and livestock facilities and supply chains, and seeks to achieve commercial success within the approved strategy of the company.

Both the firms are presenting final bids for the unit this month and Glencore is open to selling stakes to more than one party, stated the report, citing people with knowledge of the matter.

Glencore aims to slash net debt to $17-$18 billion by the end of 2016, $1 billion more than previously planned, by offloading more assets amid a prolonged commodities rout.-Reuters