Farmers and agribusinesses buying centre pivot irrigation can now apply for finance from Absa AgriBusiness through irrigation supplier Agrico at rates “as low as prime less 2%”, according to Agrico’s own announcement, whose page metadata gives a publication date of 11 September 2026. The offer is open to “qualifying” clients and, on the page I read today, 30 October 2026, carries no closing date. Absa’s own site did not show the offer in the places I looked, so the terms below are Agrico’s account of the deal, not Absa’s.
What the funder-side page says the deal covers
Agrico says the agreement lets qualifying clients finance a complete pivot system, including pipelines, the pump system, sprinklers, automation and the other components needed to get it running. Its page says repayments can be aligned with the farmer’s cash flow, with monthly or annual payments, and that VAT is payable after three to four months. It names the rate as “preferential” and “as low as prime less 2%”. Agrico has 42 branches across Southern Africa, and applicants are told to contact the closest one or email finance@agrico.co.za.
Two executives are quoted. Walter Andrag, Agrico’s managing director, says the company has spent more than 120 years serving the agricultural sector. Loffie Brandt, sector executive for agriculture at Absa AgriBusiness, is quoted as saying: “Agriculture remains one of the most important sectors of the economy and investment in irrigation capacity is critical to supporting long-term food security and farming resilience.” Absa AgriBusiness, in Agrico’s wording, “has partnered exclusively with Agrico”. Farmer’s Weekly carried the same announcement on 1 October, and ProAgri Media ran it in the same words. Neither adds independent reporting, so they confirm that the announcement was made, not that any farmer has been approved on these terms.
Status: open to qualifying clients, with no published closing date
To be plain about status: nothing I read says the offer is closed, paused or capped, and nothing gives a deadline. Nothing I read says what “qualifying” means either. I could not confirm anything on Absa’s own site, so I cannot say whether the bank sets its own eligibility checks, minimum deposits, security or fees. Those are the terms that decide whether a headline rate is available to a particular business, and none of them appears on the Agrico page.
What “prime less 2%” works out to today
Prime is the benchmark that banks add to the Reserve Bank’s repo rate. EWN reported on 23 September that the Reserve Bank raised the repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.25%. Daily Investor reported that this takes the prime lending rate to 10.75%. On that figure, prime less 2% is 8.75%, as at 30 October 2026. That is my arithmetic from the reported prime, not a quoted rate from Absa or Agrico, and one prime-rate page I checked still showed 10.50%, so a borrower should confirm the prime their bank applies on the day.
Two further points follow. First, “as low as” describes the best case for the best-rated clients. Second, a rate pegged to prime is variable. The Reserve Bank raised rates in May and again in September, according to EWN’s coverage, and economists are divided over whether it will raise them again at its next meeting, as our report on the November rate debate sets out. A pivot financed over several years carries that movement for the whole term.
An older Nedbank arrangement raises a question the page does not answer
Agrico announced a similar arrangement with Nedbank Commercial Banking in October 2023, according to the date in that page’s metadata. It said farmers could finance up to 100% of the cost of a centre pivot system, including pipes, electrical components and installation, and that Nedbank did not have to be the farmer’s main bank. The Absa announcement does not say whether the Nedbank option remains, nor whether “exclusive” means Absa is now the only bank offering finance through Agrico. I could not confirm that from either page, and I am not suggesting one deal replaces the other. A farmer comparing offers should ask Agrico directly what applies.
Why the offer lands at a tight moment for farmers
Irrigation spending is a large, lumpy cost, and the season ahead is uncertain. Our reporting on planting intentions and El Niño and on the expected shift from maize to sunflower shows the pressure growers are under. Elsewhere in agricultural finance, the Land Bank’s blended finance scheme remains a live question in our coverage of R150m reaching the Land Bank without a reopening date. Our guide to business funding that is open right now tracks other routes.
The point for any business weighing equipment finance, farm or otherwise, is the same. A rate below prime is attractive only next to the other costs: the deposit, the term, the security demanded, any fees, and what happens to the repayment if prime rises. A supplier-linked finance deal also ties the borrower to one supplier’s equipment, which can be convenient or limiting depending on the quote the farm has in hand.
What is still unknown
- Absa’s own terms. I could not find the offer on Absa’s website, so its eligibility, deposit, term and fee conditions are unconfirmed.
- Who counts as a “qualifying” client, and whether the best-case prime less 2% is available to a typical applicant.
- Any closing date, funding cap or number of systems the deal covers.
- Whether the 2023 Nedbank arrangement is still on offer.
- The exact prime rate in force at each bank on the day of any application.
This article reports a supplier’s announcement and public reporting of it. It does not recommend a lender or a product, makes no promise that any application will succeed, and we do not broker finance. Anyone considering the offer should read the lender’s own terms before signing.
