Western Australia's largest timber plantation owner, investment group New Forests, has expanded its holdings by purchasing 12,000 hectares of bluegums from Bunbury Fibre Plantations, a subsidiary of Japan's Mitsui & Co.
Six years on from the collapse of the big managed investment scheme promoters, stable new ownership and a low currency are boosting the state's woodchip industry, despite the number of plantation hectares remaining almost unchanged.
Increasing demand for hardwood plantation products has boosted the outlook for the much-maligned industry in Western Australia, but whether companies can capitalise on new growth will depend on how much suitable land they can access.
The liquidators of timber plantation assets formerly owned by collapsed managed investment scheme Great Southern may have found a buyer for the assets, with an investment trust managed by Sydney-based company New Forests agreeing to purchase the plantations.
