Palm oil industry battles with growing demand and less available land
Gbah/Kuala Lumpur — When Malaysia’s biggest plantation company, Sime Darby, leased 220,000ha of lush forest in northwest Liberia in 2009, executives said they had found a much-needed new frontier in global palm oil development. Undulating hills, a tropical climate and plenty of untouched land made the West African country’s interior ideal for palm oil growers running out of room in Southeast Asia. Nine years later, however, Sime Darby Plantation has planted only 10,000ha in Liberia and has not laid a seed in two years, stalled by uncertainties over new environmental standards. "We are losing money. We have to balance our books or there is no future," said David Parker, the head of Sime Darby Plantations in Liberia. In its earnings report for the financial year ending in June 2017, Sime Darby said it had filed a 202-million ringgit ($51.3m) impairment — a permanent reduction in the value of the asset — on its Liberia operations. The operations were "affected by a number of factors, i...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.