Proterra lists A$350m of Australian farmland assets for sale

Proterra Investment Partners is to sell the Australian farmland assets held by portfolio company the Corinella Group, according to reports.

The assets, the majority of which are planted with grains, are being offered as a single portfolio or as four separate aggregations, and could net the Minneapolis-based GP a combined A$350 million ($259 million; €219 million).

Located across southeastern Australia, the assets cover approximately 23,000 hectares and comprise the Naracoorte, Donald, Stawell and Lake Bolac aggregations.

The value of Australian farmland grew for the seventh consecutive year in 2020, according to Rural Bank’s Australian Farmland Values 2021 report, with expectations that valuations will continue to rise in the coming years.

The median price per hectare of Australian farmland increased by 12.9 percent in 2020 to A$5,907, bringing the 20-year compound annual growth rate to 7.6 percent.

Last year was also the first time in 15 years that all states and territories individually recorded increases in the median price per hectare of farmland.

Proterra Investment Partners did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication to clarify the reasons behind the sale.

Several other large Australian farmland portfolios have been listed for sale in the last 12 months, including Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets’ 103,000 hectare Lawson Grains portfolio in March.

In May, Duxton Asset Management listed the portfolio of Ace Dairy Holdings, which is one of the largest privately owned portfolios of dairy farms in Australia. In October 2020, the Harvard University Endowment Fund placed a portfolio of mixed farming assets in New South Wales on the market with sale expectations of A$120 million.