By Gerelyn Terzo, Global AgInvesting Media
Timberland real estate investment trust (REIT) Rayonier is offloading its majority timberland stake in a New Zealand joint venture it shared with Stafford Capital Partners to The Rohatyn Group (TRG). In a deal announced earlier this month, Rayonier revealed it is divesting its 77 percent New Zealand JV interest to a special purpose vehicle formed by Ents LP, an investment fund managed by TRG, for a price tag of $710 million.
The New Zealand joint venture oversees approximately 287,000 productive acres of timberlands as of year-end 2024. For decades, Rayonier has managed the Rayonier Matariki Forests comprising radiata pine plantations across the country from Northland to Southland.
As a result of the departure from New Zealand, Rayonier said it would be able to focus its capital in core U.S. markets with attractive long-term growth prospects. TRG is in a good position to foster future growth and value creation in the New Zealand assets, owing to its experience overseeing forestry assets around the world in addition to the long-term nature of its capital base that is inherent with timberland investing. The deal is expected to close in 2025, subject to regulatory approvals.
Founded in 2002 by Nicolas Rohatyn, a JPMorgan alum, TRG’s main offices are located in Boston, Massachusetts and Rotorua, New Zealand. The firm has been investing in forestry and agriculture since 2017, taking a value-add approach and investing in assets at prices it says reflect “biological yield potential.” They focus on assets in lower-risk geographies in which commercial agriculture is already mature and sufficient infrastructure is already built.
Rayonier first established a presence in New Zealand in the late 1980s, over which time the value of its business as “appreciated considerably,” according to Rayonier President and CEO Mark McHugh. After a strategic review, the firm found that its New Zealand business lacked “meaningful synergies” with its core U.S. operations and that the value of the JV wasn’t being fully appreciated in the public markets.
TRG is happy to take the timberland assets off of Rayonier’s hands, with TRG Founder and CEO Nick Rohatyn saying, “TRG is delighted to acquire Rayonier’s New Zealand business and looks forward to continuing a highly productive and successful operation over the long term. Like Rayonier, TRG’s team has a long history of involvement in the New Zealand forestry industry, and we are excited about adding their New Zealand assets to complement our global portfolio of high-quality timberland investments.”
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