Gresham House launches 'major' new Irish forestry fund

Specialist alternative asset manager Gresham House has launched a “major” new fund, it announced on Monday, to enable Irish and international investors to fund greater forest cover across Ireland.

The AIM-traded firm said the ‘Irish Strategic Forestry Fund’ would provide up to €200m (£175.98m) to create new forests, making a “significant contribution” to the country’s ‘Climate Action Plan’.

It said it had already attracted €35m from Irish investors, including a €25m cornerstone investment from the Republic of Ireland’s sovereign development fund, the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF).

ISIF's capital would complement other Irish and international capital sourced by Gresham House to promote sustainable investments in a sector that it said was “key” to addressing the climate crisis.

The board said the new fund would also acquire existing forest assets and, when fully deployed, would represent a portfolio of around 12,000 hectares of new and existing forests.

Gresham House said the fund would be managed from its Dublin office, with Joe O'Carroll acting as investment director.

The company said it had the “scale and experience” of managing large-scale, privately-funded forestry assets globally.

It said the new fund had put in place an operational management agreement with Coillte, Ireland's semi-state manager of forestry and timber investments.

The development of the fund would thus benefit from Coillte's long-term track record operating in the Irish forestry sector, the directors explained.

“This initiative marks the latest step in Gresham House's expansion in international forestry, building on our 40 years' experience of commercial forestry management and our position as a global market leader,” said chief executive officer Tony Dalwood.

“It will create a platform for enhancing Ireland's forestry sector, delivering real change and momentum and making a meaningful contribution to Ireland's crucial afforestation ambitions.”

At 1135 GMT, shares in Gresham House were down 0.53% at 756p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.