Hassad, Qatar's premier investor in food and agribusiness sectors, announced on Monday that it continues the strategic repositioning of its Australian agricultural investment activities, securing an agreement, which will see the transition of Hassad's investments to Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) agricultural portfolio.
The transition of the significant majority of farms to MIRA's agricultural portfolio is expected to be completed before the end of this month.The decision is in line with Hassad's strategic review, and achieves its objective to broaden its agricultural investments across a significantly larger and more diversified Australian farming portfolio.
Commenting on the occasion, Hassad CEO Mohamed Badr al-Sadah said that under the agreement, Hassad Australia's portfolio will be merged with MIRA's agricultural portfolio, noting that this investment will enable Hassad to maintain its long-term commitment to Australian primary production.
Al-Sadah added that the agreement will also reinforce Hassad's strategy, aimed at supporting the country's food security efforts. Hassad will supply the local market with meat products in case of shortage or need.
As for the on-farm management teams on the properties, Hassad said they will be offered continued employment. MIRA's agricultural business will continue to build its regional footprint and invest in those communities in which it operates, creating further employment opportunities in its key regional offices in Albury and Orange.
MIRA has a strong track record in Australian agriculture, farm management and commodity production, having built and managed its agricultural portfolio for more than 10 years.
It manages more than four million hectares of farmland across Australia and is one of the country's largest diversified farmers, providing Hassad with access to significant scale and expertise to enhance its future growth.
Hassad underlined its commitment to invest in Australia and will continue investing in this market in line with new strategy to explore more downstream opportunities.
Hassad sees MIRA as a long-term partner and hopes to do more business with them in the future.