New Ethical Forestry letter: Investment limbo and HURRICANE worries cast further doubt over investor’s money

A new letter dated 28^th November from Ethical Forestry liquidators HJS Recovery has told investors that they are still no closer to reaching a solution.

Shane Biddlecombe, Joint Liquidator over the troubled and unregulated forestry scheme explained yet another lengthy gap in correspondence with investors, stating that he did not have “anything of any substance to report”.

Repeating information from previous letters, Mr Biddlecombe explained again that the “preferred purchaser”, Mr Robert Brown, was still seeking funding in Costa Rica in order to purchase and maintain the investment, a process which judging by previous letters may have begun as early as March.

The letter also confirmed that alternative funding methods were still on the table, including private funding and an Investor’s Initiative, however due to expense these options are being treated as a ‘plan B’ in the event Mr Brown is unable to secure funding from the Bank of Costa Rica.

Hurricane Otto and Ethical Forestry

Perhaps more concerning is the news that Hurricane Otto made landfall over Costa Rica last week. With reports that there have been Costa Rican fatalities and the position of most of the trees seemingly under the path Otto has taken, it is unclear to investors at this point what damage (if any) has been caused to the trees, and what impact this may have on the investment’s future.

Biddlecombe stated “At this stage we are not aware of the impact of the hurricane to the plantations but Mr Brown will provide a damage report in due course”.

Ethical Forestry Claims

In related news, Spencer Churchill Claims Advice continues to chase and win claims relating to negligent financial advice given to Ethical Forestry investors who have gone into the investment through a SIPP Pension.

If you took the SIPP or SSAS route to investment and you haven’t yet had your advice checked to ensure that it was suitable, you can still do this using our FREE initial assessment.