Jul 02, 2010. /Lesprom Network/. Hancock Queensland Plantations, a company managed by Hancock Timber Resource Group (HTRG) on behalf of institutional investors, has finalised the acquisition of Forestry Plantations Queensland (FPQ), the company said in a statement received by Lesprom Network. Hancock Queensland Plantations’ client investors paid A$603 million for FPQ whose main asset is a 99-year licence to manage, harvest and re-grow plantation timber on approximately 204,000 hectares of plantation lands. Under the 99 year licence agreement the Queensland Government retains ownership of the underlying land held under the licence. “We are honoured to have purchased the rights to manage these important and outstanding forest plantations,” said Hancock Timber Resource Group President, Dan Christensen. Mr Christensen said all award based employees of FPQ are guaranteed security of tenure for three years with a commitment to the terms of the enterprise bargaining agreement that FPQ reached with its employees and the unions. He added that all existing awards, previous terms and conditions of employment continue and continuity of service is recognised. “We have strong local relationships through our existing Australian operations and plan to make the ownership transition as seamless as possible. We are impressed with FPQ’s operations and have no plans to initiate a major restructure,” Mr Christensen said. “This investment reflects our long term commitment to Australia, our confidence in the country’s economy and in the local forestry industry,” Dan Christensen said. “We seek to add value to the Queensland forestry industry through bringing our expertise and sustainability practices.” Mr Christensen said Hancock Timber Resource Group will seek third party certification for management of the plantations under Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standards. “The lands are already certified under the Australian Forestry Standard and that certification will be maintained.” All Hancock Timber managed forests in Australasia are FSC certified. Hancock Timber Resource Group is a global timberland investment management organisation based in Boston, Massachusetts which manages more than five million acres (two million hectares) of timberland in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Brazil and the United States, including 167,000 hectares under the ownership of Hancock Victorian Plantations in Victoria, Australia.