The largest US timberland transaction of the year, the 205,000-acre, medium quality Project Teal from Rayonier, has fetched half a billion dollars. The purchase was split between three buyers, EFM, New Forests and Campbell Global.
Many have already done the per-acre math, as the parties are not talking.
The consensus: New Forest acquired the Oklahoma block for a “robust” price, according to Fastmarkets RISI, while in Washington, three “less-robust” blocks nearly equal in size were split between EFM and Campbell, both of which have landholdings in the area.
While specific per-parcel/per-acre valuations are not yet learned, close observers noted large spreads, likely lowest average for the northern piece, hampered by long hauls to market. A separate 6,000-acre block did not sell.
Sources agree: All three buyers will reconfigure their acquisitions into some form of a climate/carbon project, including reduced harvest.
Hoo-Who gets Project Owl?
Just one new timberland offer for 2025 provoked any market buzz in early December. It is Project Owl, Rice University’s roughly 50,000-acre pine forest in southwest Louisiana with two-round bids due in January and March.
It is overall “very attractive,” even “great,” sources told Fastmarkets RISI, as “good as any traditional industrial forestland portfolio in the South.” Only a few knocks against it were mentioned: A fire hurt the property last year, since replanted, and hurricanes impact the area over time.
Overview ’24 downbeat, outlook ’25 cloudy
Summed up, multiple Fastmarkets RISI sources in early December described US timberland transaction conditions as “dull” and “lackluster,” as too-few quality transactions occurred again this year.
It’s a “real struggle,” lacking a single “premier deal” occurring all year. This is primarily because owners have no compelling reason to let go quality positions.
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