OP-Forest Owner Fund (Non-UCITS) buys additional areas of forestry land from UPM

 OP-Forest Owner Fund (Non-UCITS) and UPM have signed a contract of sales of five separate forest estates covering in total about 1,420 hectares of forestry land in Finland. The sold areas are located in Joensuu and Tohmajärvi in North Karelia and in Kuopio in Northern Savolax. In addition a separate long term wood purchase and forest management agreement covering 1,000 hectares of the sold area has been signed. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. ”OP-Forest Owner Fund (Non-UCITS) is targeted to private individuals whom it offers a new way to own forest. The fund is a good choice for people who are interested in investing in forestry land, but do not have enough expertise or time to manage the forest themselves,” says Tapio Tilli, Portfolio Manager of the fund.

”A long term wood purchase and forest management agreement with UPM ensures steady demand for wood as well as professional, sustainable forestry in our forests according to the targets of our fund. This ensures best profit for the fund,” Tapio Tilli describes the benefits of the cooperation with UPM.

“The forest estates sold by UPM are well managed commercial forests with high yield”, states Sauli Brander, Senior Vice President, UPM Wood Sourcing and Forestry. “Additionally the long term wood purchase and forest management agreement is important part of our offering especially in discussions with investors.”

UPM has regularly sold its forest assets as part of developing its real estate portfolio. At present, UPM owns approximatelyu 765,000 hectares of forestry land in Finland.

 For further information, please contact:
Sales Manager Riitta Väisänen, UPM, tel. +358 400 546 690
Portfolio Manager Tapio Tilli, OP Group, tel. +358 50 357 9743
 
Notes to editors:
 Through the renewing of the bio and forest industries, UPM is building a sustainable future across six business areas: UPM Biorefining, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Paper Asia, UPM Paper Europe and North America and UPM Plywood. Our products are made of renewable raw materials and are recyclable. We serve our customers worldwide. The group employs around 21,000 people and its annual sales are approximately € 10 billion. UPM shares are listed on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. UPM – The Biofore Company – www.upm.com
 
OP-Forest Owner Fund (Non-UCITS) is a specialised investment fund focused on forest investments. In addition to direct forest investments, the fund can also perform indirect investments in forest estates. The fund's primary method for earning profit is the sale of wood in the forest estates owned by the fund. The fund hands out a minimum of 75 per cent of its realised net profit annually to the fund's shareholders.  Further information on the fund can be found at www.op.fi/rahastot

UPM  .   FINLANDIA - 19 febrero 2015