Venture Pacific hopes to clinch beech deal

Press, 3 December 1987, Page 33

Venture Pacific hopes to clinch beech deal

Venture Pacific, a listed New Zealand venture capital company, hopes to conclude negotiations for the purchase of the Forestry Corporation’s West Coast beech forests before Christmas. The company’s annual report, says Venture Pacific, along with a joint venture partner, has the only remaining tender for the sale of the beech resource. “Negotiations are continuing and outstanding issues will hopefully be resolved before Christmas,” the report says. Venture Pacific has proposed to build a $35 million high technology sawmill and drying facility in Reefton to recover the hardwood and produce high quality remanufactured timber pro-

ducts. The new mill could be used as the prototype for similar facilities elsewhere in the world, the report says. The annual report shows that Venture Pacific has set aside $7.5M this year as an investment provision. “This provision follows a systematic assessment of the current risk in relation to the specific resource areas and projects to which investment relates,” the report says.

It is a reserve available for writing off doubtful investment debts.

The company had more than SIO.BM invested in companies and projects at balance date.

“The only project cost written off during the year was $150,000 for an

ammonia urea fertilizer plant,” the report says.

Venture Pacific has interests in Pharmol Pacific, a company listed on the New Zealand and Australian stock exchanges, which is involved in biotechnology and pharmaceutical research; Energy International, a private United States company, involved in coal related research and development, and Cetec Engineering, a Van-couver-based company listed on the Canadian Stock Exchange, which specialises in the development of advanced sawmilling equipment. The company has an additional $17.2M invested in subsidiary companies. These include Venture Minerals, Venture Exploration, New Zealand

Hardwood Holdings, and Venture Pacific Overseas Finance.

The annual report says Venture Pacific is now active in four key resource areas: forestry, energy, biotechnology, and mining. “In the current financial environment the company is in a strong position with cash resources of SI7M at balance date and no debt,” the report says.

As previously reported, Venture Pacific increased its net profit by 450 per cent to $2,538,210 ($461,799) in the year to September 30. Turnover was up 650 per cent to $13,858,687 ($2,289,664).

A dividend of 2.25 c a share will be paid on December 1.