Fiji Pine targets growth, sustainability
LANDOWNERS who have leased their land to Fiji Pine Limited were recently given a bonus payment despite the company facing challenges due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy.
Fiji Pine Group chairman Ratu Aisea Katonivere said under his chairmanship, Pine Group Ltd will continue to steer towards growth and sustainability.
Ratu Aisea, while speaking at the Fiji Pine 2020 Lease Security Bonus Payment in
Drasa, Lautoka said; “The year 2020 is the most challenging year in the history of the Pine Group of Companies”.
“A year where our sawn timber sales has taken a major dip, we had no production at our sawmill for five weeks, our woodchip has taken a major hit as well in both volume and price and there was no certainty in the business going forward.”
He added that one would have expected that given these enormous challenges faced this year, it was a testament of the company’s resilience that they were once again hosting their pine landowners for the Lease
Security Bonus Payment.
Ratu Aisea said once again delivered.
Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama handed 20 landowners their lease security bonus payment amounting to $5 million. “With this payment, Fiji Pine Group has paid out a total of $24.1m in lease security bonus payments over the years.
“It’s a remarkable return on our landholders’ investment, an investment that has now proven steady even in the most difficult of times,” Prime Minister Bainimarama said. “We adopted an innovative payment sys
Fiji Pine has tem where 30 per cent of these bonuses are paid through the equal distribution mechanism, while the remaining 70 per cent is paid by way of income generating and community-building projects.”
Prime Minister Bainimarama added that this new approach allowed a rapid injection of development funding among our landowning communities.
“As we look ahead with that same foresight, I ask that you help Fiji Pine continue to strive toward sustainable growth.”