Evergreen harvests $3.1 million profit

By Mark Reynolds

Forestry company Evergreen swung into profit by $3.1 million in its June financial year, turning round from a $147,000 loss a year earlier.

Sales rose to $8.7 million, up from just $385,000 last year. Evergreen suspended its harvest of trees during the Asian economic crisis and has just begun cutting them again during the year just ended.

Chairman Peter Wilson said the company's production volume during 1998/99 was small relative to projected future harvest volumes.

"But the year's profit exceeded our expectations, with further improvement expected next year," he said.

The company's balance sheet was strengthened through a $22.4 million convertible notes issue, which allowed it to reduce its non-current liabilities from $47 million to $30 million.

An independent valuation of the company's forests showed they were worth $129.9 million at the end of the financial year, up from $122.1 million at the beginning. That equated to a net asset value of 86 cents a share.

Chief executive Mark Bogle said he was pleased with the results and the company was actively seeking to expand its operations.

"The outlook for the forestry sector has improved significantly with positive signs that demand from the Asian economies is returning sooner than expected."