Tress & Money Americas

Tress & Money Americas

Aggressive timber acquisitions continue through 2008

Date: 24 a 26/6
Place: Harmonie Club, New York, NY

Strong returns from timber and timber related investments in periods of market downturns have prompted US and international institutions to consider allocations to the forest product industry. With the impending downturn in US and European markets, and a dislocation between demand in developed and emerging economies, investor allocations to timber are continuing to rise. As opportunities in US timber become scarce and investor driven pricing squeezes returns, the entire forest products industry begins to look at the global market for growth.

Trees & Money Americas is the event where you can evaluate and craft your timber market strategy for 2008-9. Top timber managers, integrated product companies, pulp and paper manufacturers and investors will provide a roadmap for you to successfully plan the future of your business. Increase returns from your investments by understanding the use of cellulosic ethanol, carbon trading, mineral rights, lobbying, tax structures, bonds, conservation easements, certification, and other revenue streams.

If you are looking at timber and forest product investments, you can't miss this event.

Pre-conference workshop:

24/6 - Tuesday

UNDERSTANDING BEST PRACTICES FOR GLOBAL TIMBER VALUATION IN DIVERSIFIED TIMBER PORTFOLIOS

With the expansion of timber portfolios from US assets to rapidly encompassing emerging and developed markets, the valuation of timber has become increasingly complex. The new variables that each market presents to evaluators consultants, portfolio managers, and timber managers, has added to the difficulty of arriving at accurate values for them and their clients holdings. This workshop will examine successful market practices for valuation of timber assets in the US and across the globe. Set in an interactive format, the workshop will assess the unique challenges of measuring and correctly calculating the value of their entire timber portfolio. Participants will learn key strategies and implementation secrets for success in accurately valuing timber.

Obtaining accurate valuation of assets in a rapidly changing currency environment
Balancing different international accounting standards
Surveying physical timber assets
Accounting for fluctuations in desirability of different species of timber
Incorporating alternate revenue streams into timber valuation
Discounting asset values for political and other geographic or geopolitical risks
Complying with US accounting standards for public and non-public organizations

Who should attend this workshop?

Pension fund, endowment and family office managers
Timber investment management professionals
Investment, accounting and management consultants
External portfolio managers
Timber consultants
Rural real estate and land appraisers

8h30 - Registration and coffe

9h - Workshop begins

10h30 - Refreshments

12h - Lunch

2h30 - Refreshments

4h - Workshop ends

Conference day one:

25/06 - Wednesday

8h - Registration and coffee

9h - Chairperson's address

MACROECONOMIC DYNAMICS OF THE FOREST PRODUCTS INDUSTRY

9h15 - Current economic conditions driving the North American forest products industry

Impact of a US recession on forest product consumption patterns
Assessing ramifications: the slide in the US dollar and US dollar decoupling on forest products
Growth in emerging markets and their lack of correlation with US trends
Global infrastructure and real estate investing and its impact on the timber industry
Potential for consolidation in the forest products industry -Rocky Goodnow
Senior Economist,RISI

9h45 - Forces driving new investors towards timber related assets

Understanding the recession proof / uncorrelated nature of timber and timber related investments
Deconstructing the attractiveness of timber assets to pensions and endowments
Reasons for private equity and hedge fund investors entering into the forest product market
Benefiting from the growth in demand for timber related assets by institutional investors

-Sue Goodman
Portfolio Manager,ABP Investments

10h30 Networking and refreshments

EMERGING TRENDS IN TIMBER RELATED INDUSTRIES

11h - When will pricing reflect end product market conditions rather than investor demand?

Reconciling the drop in demand for forest products with the pricing for the asset class

Gauging the impact on a potential drop in pricing to the desirability of the asset class

How do falling end product prices affect investor returns?

11h30 - Keynote Panel: Analyzing the state of the US timber market and its factors

Are owners abandoning High-Better-Use land development as a method for revenue generation?
Impact of the sale of large industrial tracks of timber from integrated firms to investors
Understanding changing rates of return from US timberland
Dynamics of operating in a sellers' market for investors looking to increase US timber holdings

-Joel Shapiro
Chief Executive Officer,Timbervest

12h15 Speed networking

This is the revolutionary, exciting, quick and non-pressurized way to meet fellow conference delegates and industry peers in one fifty minute session. These brief meetings are the starting point for conversation and networking throughout the conference. This is where long-lasting and profitable business relationships begin.

13h05 - Lunch

14h - RECESSION PROOF RETURNS

14h15 - What makes timber and forest products strong assets in a recession?

Do current changes in the US economy impact the low correlation of returns
How openly tradable timber (ETFs, Indexes, REITS, AIMS listed companies) affects timber assets in a recession
Maximizing returns from timber assets during a region specific economic recession
Historic measurements of timber returns versus other uncorrelated asset classes

-Timothy Corriero
Managing Partner,FIA Timber Partners

14h45 - Understanding the needs of institutional investors from timber investments

Underlying factors driving pensions and endowments to purchase timber assets
Asset allocation levels and the use of commingled funds to maximize purchasing power
Are timber acquisitions real estate allocations for institutional investors?
Identifying hedge and private equity funds that invest in timber and their fund mandates

-Liane Luke
Managing Director,Four Winds Capital Management

15h15 Networking and refreshments

DRIVING NON-TIMBER RELATED RETURNS

15h45 Roundtables: Understanding Timber Investments

Interactive roundtable discussions allow delegates to meet and discuss issues relevant to their job functions. Chose from a selection of 4 cutting edge topics.

Table 1: Working with woodland owners and family owned forests to build large timber acquisitions

Table 2: Comparing the benefits of managed and plantation forestry

Table 3: Utilizing private equity and hedge funds to access timber investments

Table 4: Managing political risk in emerging market timber investments

-Keith A. Argow
President,National Woodland Owners Association

-Jack Lutz
Founder, Forest Research Group

16h30 - Harnessing non-timber related revenue streams from forest assets

Benefits of revenue generation through non-timber related activities
Opening up recreational uses of timberland such as hunting leases
Adding value to timber assets through mineral extraction rights in the midst of a commodities boom
Examining the use of grazing and other non-timber related forest products to boost investments
FUnderstanding the revenue stream generated by carbon credits for US and international timber

-Terry Anderson
President Advanced Ecology, Ltd.

17h Networking reception

Speaker list

-Brian Watson
Managing Director,Sirios Capital Management

Conference day two:

26/4 - Thursday

8h - Welcome coffee

9h - Chairperson's address

-James F. Webb Jr.
Director ,RMK Timberland Group

NEW MARKETS, NEW PRODUCTS, NEW LOGISTICS

9h15 - Identifying emerging global timber and pulp and paper hotspots

Markets that are causing global timber shortages in Europe
Understanding the practices of firms successfully navigating these global markets
Factors to consider before entering particular international markets
Identifying global markets that match your firms competitive advantage and product profile

-Dennis Neilson
Managing Director,DANA Limited

10h - Roundtables: Emerging Timber Markets

Interactive roundtable discussions allow delegates to meet and discuss issues relevant to their job functions. Chose from a selection of 4 cutting edge topics.

Table 1: Beyond Brazil - addressing the attractiveness of the Latin American timber market

Table 2: Impact of changes in Russian timber laws on local and global ownership

Table 3: Dynamics of Timber consumption and investments in China

Table 4: Understanding the benefits of investing in the African timber market

-Robert Flynn
Director, International Timber,RISI

10h45 - Networking and refreshments

PURSUING TIMBERLAND ACQUISITIONS

12h10 - Finding new timberland in North America

Impact of meltdown in Canadian timber markets on availability of new land acquisitions
Agglomerating small fragments into large industrial lots to harness economies of scale
Negotiating with individual owners of small lots to increase holding size
Challenges faced by firms attempting to acquire adjoining parcels of land
Prospect of mergers between TIMOs, commingled funds and other timber management vehicles

-Blake Stansell
Vice President for Investments,The Forestland Group

12h40 Lunch

GLOBAL TIMBER INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT

14h Panel Session: Portfolio restructuring and diversification to match global timber consumption

How demand for forest products outside of the EU and the US differs from current US based necessities
Methods for rapidly diversifying species within timber holdings
Best practices for adapting to changes in global shipping and distribution
Understanding the potential portfolio correlation between forest product and other asset classes

-Andrew Kelsen
Vice President,Gray & Company

14h45 - Understanding the Brazilian timber market

Drivers behind the explosive Brazilian timber market
Acquiring and managing large parcels of timberland
Investment structures and incentives conducive to global investors
Exit strategies for international timber funds and managers

-Aldo De Cresci Neto
Partner,Fleury Malheiros, Gasparini, De Cresci e Nogueira de Lima Advogados

15h15 Networking and refreshments

BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS TO FURTHER YOUR INVESTMENT

15h45 Benefits of forest certification, conservation easements, and partnerships in US and global market

Differentiating between leading forest certification structures and their application processes
Quantifying the benefits of forest certification to the value of timber and timber products
Outlining the benefits of utilizing conservation easements in land sales
Employing mitigation and mitigation banking to increase returns on timber assets

-Kent Gilges
Managing Partner,Conservation Forestry

16h45 Leveraging relationships with international and local organizations

Partnering with organizations to engage the local community and improve labor relations
Utilizing the ability of partner organizations to obtain certifications, carbon and tax credits
Lobbying to promote proactive legislation on a global scale
Creating and joining national lobbying organization to advocate for the forest products industry
Harnessing the legislative power of congress to promote and protect the US forest products industry
Understanding the impact of international conventions and treatise on timber owners (Kyoto)