Retirement plans from the U.K., Australia and the Netherlands have teamed up to purchase a 170,000-hectare plantation forestry estate in Tasmania, Australia, from New Forests, which will provide investment management services.
The £33 billion ($40.4 billion) Pension Protection Fund, London; the A$125 billion ($80.5 billion) UniSuper, Melbourne, Australia; and APG Asset Management acquired Forico, Tasmania's largest private forest management company, from a New Forests-managed fund, a news release said.
The estate also owns key infrastructure along the supply chain, including two wood-processing mills, a seedling nursery and a fiber technology laboratory.
The three investors will each own 33% of Forico and the forestry estate as a direct investment. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"Forestry is an important asset class for the PPF, and this direct investment further underpins our commitment to investing responsibly," said Alex Leonard, head of infrastructure, timberland and farmland at the PPF, in the news release. "Our focus on using our funds in these longer-term productive investments, in both U.K. and global markets, is important for sustainable growth and productivity."
Sandra Lee, head of private markets at UniSuper, said in the release: "This adds further momentum to our growing private markets and forestry portfolios, as we continue to be on the lookout for quality investments that help our members grow their retirement savings over the long term."
APG invested on behalf of Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP, Heerlen, Netherlands, which has €474 billion ($504.5 billion) in assets. A spokesperson for APG said this is not the first direct investment the manager has made on behalf of ABP, with a global forestry portfolio made up of direct and fund investments.
Mark Rogers, CEO at New Forests and chair of Forico, said the manager will "be looking at ways to add further value, harnessing the growth in the circular bioeconomy, carbon projects, natural capital and biodiversity markets."
New Forests has $7.3 billion in assets under management.
Details on the PPF and UniSuper's forestry exposures were not immediately available.
