Overseas investment decision for case 202100373 - Corisol New Zealand Limited

The Applicant has applied for consent under the special test relating to forestry activities set out in section 16A(4) of the Act.

The land to be acquired is currently used predominantly for farming purposes as a breeding and finishing unit. The Applicant intends to subdivide and sell approximately 71 hectares of land (including dwellings) and convert the majority of the remaining land (approximately 400 hectares) into a commercial plantation forest. The Applicant expects planting to begin during winter 2022. The Applicant will replant after harvesting the first crop of trees.

The remaining land will be made up of approximately 2 hectares of native bush and scrub, 4 hectares of infrastructure and 21 hectares buffer land which will include riparian and boundary setbacks.

The investment is part of the Applicant’s broader forestry investment strategy with afforestation of a forestry estate with a high component of first rotation forestry over the next 10-15 years.

By way of background, the land that is the subject of this application is Land Use Capability (LUC) classifications: LUC 3 (194 hectares), LUC 4 (125 hectares) and LUC 6 (177 hectares).

The 71 hectares of land to be subdivided and sold contains LUC 3 and 4 land. The majority of the LUC 6 land is already in use for forestry, as it has been harvested and is in a cut-over state. Other parts of the land are also in forestry use, which includes some LUC 3 and 4 land in the form of wide shelterbelts and smaller stands of trees.