Over $7M paid out by Fiji Pine to landowners since 2012

Fiji Pine Limited has paid out more than $7 million to its landowners since 2012.

This was highlighted in Parliament today by the Minister for Forestry Osea Naiqamu when asked by the Opposition Member Mosese Bulitavu on how the Fiji Pine Limited has assisted landowners in terms of machines to participate in the logging industry.

Naiqamu says apart from the job creation in the Pine Industry and lease payment to landowners, Fiji Pine pays a 3 percent bonus based levy to landowners to venture into activities within the pine industry.   

He says the company also pays a 2.5% levy to the Forest based trust for community based projects which amounts to about $1.6 million.

The Minister says they also allow landowners to invest in machines and other equipment to enable their active participation in operations.

Naiqamu says other payments to landowners include stumpage fee of 12% and more recently the introduction of the lease security bonus payments since 2014.

Stumpage is the price a private firm pays for the right to harvest timber from a given land base.

It is paid to the current owner of the land.