Shareholding Ministers Winston Peters, State-Owned Enterprises, and Grant Robertson, Finance, directed Landcorp, now known as Pamu, to cease the sale process for the 4769ha Mt Hamilton property in Southland and Mawheraiti, a 1448ha deer breeding property at Cape Foulwind near Westport.
“The shareholders have directed Pāmu to cease the sale of farms, consistent with the new shareholders’ views on the role that a state-owned enterprise like Pamu plays in the agriculture sector,” a spokesman said.
“As a result of this Pamu has withdrawn from sale the two farms we currently had on the market and these two farms will continue to form part of the company’s portfolio of farms.
“No final decisions have been made as to where forest planting will occur.
“The withdrawal from sale of these two farms is not linked to the Government’s forestry announcement of last week.”
The Government has announced plans to plant a billion trees in the next 10 years with Pamu committing to plant 2000ha of forestry in the next two years.
Last year Pamu withdrew a 482ha West Coast deer farm, Raft Creek, from sale.
The three properties were in a portfolio of 10 farms Pamu put up for sale in September 2016.
The three sold were the 120ha Caroline Terrace and 1091ha Burkes Creek on the West Coast and the 1508ha Copper Road in Otago.
The spokesman said the sale of Jericho, a 1353ha property in Southland, was proceeding and conditional on approval from the Overseas Investment Office (OIO). There was also a back-up offer for the property that did not require OIO sign-off.
“The timing for any decisions on Jericho is in the hands of the OIO,” the spokesman said.
Its three North Island properties put on the market: Waiteti in the central North Island, Rangedale in north Wairarapa and Tangimoana in Manawatu were subject to the Treaty of Waitangi process.
Pamu initially put seven South Island and three North Island farms covering 12,000ha up for sale in a move chief executive Steve Carden said at the time was designed to change its business structure and reflect that the sale properties did not match the direction the company was headed.
