Tag Archives: press-releases
Liquidator To Sell Further Gunns’ Plantations
Updated Tue Apr 30, 2013 10:07am AEST PHOTO: A forestry machinery holding logs in forest. (file) (ABC, Jessica Kidd) MAP: Albany 6330 The liquidator of the collapsed Tasmanian forestry giant Gunns has more than doubled the number of timber plantations it is putting on the market. The liquidator has already announced plans to sell about 100,000 hectares of plantations Gunns managed on behalf of investors. Now, PPB Advisory is seeking court approval to sell 118,000 hectares of trees formerly managed by another collapsed agribusiness, Great Southern. Gunns took control of Great Southern’s managed investment schemes in 2009 when the Perth-based company collapsed with debts of about $700 million. A significant number of plantations are in Western Australia but the company had interests nation-wide. Gunns went into receivership in September last year. The liquidator says the proceeds of the Great Southern trees will be distributed among the schemes’ 40,000 investors. It means Gunns’ trees in every Australian state are now on the market. PPB Advisory estimates the sale process will take less than four months. Continue reading
Investor Demand Driving Farmland Prices, says Knight Frank
By +Peter Mindenhall Friday 19 April 2013 Farmland continues to be seen as a preferred property investment option for many buyers, according to a new report. Research conducted by Knight Frank indicates that average farmland values in England rose by 1.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2013 to GBP 6,307 per acre. Increased demand for land has seen prices increase by four per cent in the last 12 months and 207 per cent over the last ten years. Knight Frank noted that farmland continues to outperform many other asset classes over the mid to long-term, predicting a further increase of between four and five per cent in the next 12 months. The firm said that although investors – fed up of poor returns – seem to be moving away from low-yielding ‘safe-haven’ investments, such as AAA-rated government bonds, there continues to be strong interest in farmland. Some of this demand can be attributed to famers paying a premium to secure land adjoining, or close to, their existing units. Tom Raynham, from Knight Frank’s Farms & Estates team, claimed that farmland still has “a valuable role” to play in investment portfolios. “Even though stocks and shares are back in favour, the markets remain volatile,” he stated. “Land offers something more tangible, yet still has the potential to provide good capital appreciation.” Mr Raynham said that for private investors, it also offers significant tax and amenity advantages. “This combination of benefits has seen increased activity in Lincolnshire, the UK’s arable heartland, with some large blocks of good arable land recently making over GBP 10,000 per acre,” he noted. James Prewett, head of regional farm sales at Knight Frank, claimed there is still a shortage of supply and, while more marginal land may have a lost a little of its value, demand remains strong for commercial units. Continue reading
A Fix For Europe’s Emissions Problem
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/329f0798-a762-11e2-9fbe-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz2QpKvqtJe The EU carbon trading scheme needs a serious overhaul The EU’s emissions trading scheme was supposed to bestow global leadership in tackling climate change. In practice, it has long been an embarrassment. A combination of industry lobbying and recession has so swamped the market with permits to emit carbon that prices have slumped and no longer impose any constraint on behaviour. Brussels has tried to bolster the market with half measures. But its bluff was called this week when the European parliament rejected a quick fix that would have propped up prices by postponing the auction of a big tranche of new permits. MEPs rightly refused to court personal unpopularity to no environmental purpose. Much deeper reforms are needed to rid the ETS of its flaws. One is the way that it imposes costs on the production, not consumption, of carbon. This creates bizarre incentives, resulting in the closure of industrial plants in Europe to make way for more polluting ones in Asia. Not only does this seem unforgivably self-defeating at a time when Europe is struggling for competitiveness; it is not even much good for the environment. European nations may be cutting carbon production, but consumption, when imports are counted, has been shooting up – something that spells more pollution, not less. In addition, the focus on production actually thwarts the development of the ETS into a global system – a vital necessity if companies are to be able to compete on equal terms. So first, a mechanism must be found to tax imports from countries outside the system. Second, European leaders need to agree longer-term targets for cutting emissions. Recession has made it easy for the EU to meet its current 2020 targets. A 2030 or 2050 target would help to convince businesses of the need for investment in “green” technologies. Third, the EU needs to deal with the overhang of permits, and find a mechanism to prevent it accumulating again. One idea is to set a time limit, say of three years, after which an unused permit would expire. Another would be to create an independent body with a mandate to achieve cuts of a certain level, taking account of the economic cycle. Whatever it does, the EU must find a way to end the system’s absurdities. If politicians cannot build a system that commands public confidence and creates a credible market, the risk of Europe moving to more coercive measures, or abandoning effective climate policies, will only increase. Continue reading
