Three neighbouring forests acquired over a period of 25 years and a wind farm in Perthshire are being brought to the market for offers over £130 million.
The assets, which are for sale through selling agent Savills, total 5,630 hectares and are available as a whole or in two lots, offering an estimated 2 million tonnes of stored carbon in around 5 million trees and 1,800 hectares of open space.
James Adamson, head of forestry investment at Savills, said opportunities of this scale are rare in the UK market.
“Forestry is an exciting and established investment asset class and one of the few that offers proven financial returns with true sustainability credentials,” said Mr Adamson.
“The complementary income from the wind farm and the assets provide an excellent long-term home for capital, with strong income generating potential.”
The forest comprises three forests – Griffin, Ballinloan A and Moness – which form the majority of the Griffin Forest Complex, dominating the hillside south of Aberfeldy.
Location and access are well supported with local timber markets in Dunkeld and Stirling, and there is ready access to the A9, providing access from the forests to a range of timber milling and processing facilities.
The first lot – Griffin Forest, Ballinloan A and Griffin Wind Farm – is being marketed at offers over £105 million.
Griffin Forest extends to 4,245 hectares and Ballinloan A totals 154 hectares.
This site is predominantly Spruce and the other conifers include areas of Larch, Pine and Fir planted for species diversity.
There is also a small area of veteran Scots Pine around Loch Kennard which dates from pre-1860 and the open area includes lochs which total 45 hectares of open water.
Griffin Wind Farm has been operational since 2012 and has 39 turbines, each with a rated capacity of 2.3MW.
The current term of the wind farm lease extends to 2037.
Meanwhile, the second lot – Moness Forest – has offers over £25 million.
Extending to around 1,389 hectares, the productive timber consists of pure stands of Sitka spruce, with minor components of other conifers providing diversity throughout.
The majority of the current timber crop was planted in the 1980s.
Nick Green, head of energy at Savills, said: “The rent from the wind farm comprises both an uncapped index linked fixed rent and a rent linked to the performance of the wind farm. This attractive predictable income stream balances well with the value created by the biological growth of the forest.”
