| Decision | Consent granted Section 12(a) Overseas Investment Act 2005 |
|---|---|
| Decision Maker | Overseas Investment Office |
| Decision Date | 8 March 2022 |
| Pathway(s) | Special forestry (One-off purchase) |
| Investment | 549.8836 hectares of land located at 1126 Grove Burn Road, near Tuatapere, Southland known as “Barclay Trust Farm” |
| Consideration | Withheld under s9(2)(b)(ii) of the Official Information Act 1982 |
| Applicant | Ponga Silva Limited Germany (45.4%) UK (17.2%) USA (17.2%) France (6.7%) Various (13.5%) |
| Vendor | Mark Alister Barclay and Casey May Thomas as trustees of the Mark Barclay Family Trust New Zealand (100%) |
| Background | The Applicant is a special purpose vehicle, established to own forest investments in New Zealand. The Applicant is a wholly-owned subsidiary of a German company. The Applicant is acquiring a freehold interest in approximately 549.8836 hectares of farm land in Southland. The land is currently used as a beef and dairy grazing unit. It will be converted to commercial forestry, with planting expected to occur in 2022 and 2023. The Applicant plans to hold the Land long term and continue sustainable forest management according to best forestry practices. The Applicant has identified 14.5 hectares, including a homestead, that it intends to subdivide and sell. Of the total area (after subdivision) approximately 300.6 hectares will be used for commercial forestry (including 286.8 hectares of new planting). The remaining unplanted land includes native bush and scrub (182.3 hectares), roads and tracks (28 hectares), and buffer land, set-backs and riparian planting (23.3 hectares). The land is a combination of LUC Class 4 (120 hectares) and LUC Class 6 (430 hectares). The consent has been granted on the basis the applicant has satisfied the investor test criterion and the special forestry test in section 16A(4) of the Overseas Investment Act 2005. |
| More information | David Raudkivi Russell McVeagh PO Box 8, Auckland 1140 |