Andrew Forrest’s PR play in battle for Huon
Who would have thought a Tasmanian salmon farm could incite this much furore?
Such is the case in the ongoing tug of war between Australia’s richest man Andrew Forrest and global meat behemoth JBS, led in Australia by Brent Eastwood, both fighting to gain control of one of the Apple Isle’s key commodities, salmon producer Huon.
And sadly for Twiggy, it looks as if the meatworks operator is coming out on top, with its $3.85 per share offer given the green light by long-time owners Frances and Peter Bender this week.
In response, Forrest, who runs and processes cattle through his Harvey Beef brand, took it to the pages of the nation’s metropolitan newspapers on Thursday, issuing a direct “public challenge” to JBS via full page ads – including one in this very masthead – to do better when it comes to ethical management of the meat-processing group’s herds.
It's a move usually reserved for another billionaire, on the opposite coast.
And it didn’t stop there, with Forrest also drumming up editorial space across the whole gamut of newspapers, again including this very paper.
It was a comment to The Australian Financial Review, however, that caught this column’s attention.
“I am saying to JBS, stop the public relations, just show us that you’ve made a commitment and that commitment is to no pain, no fear,” he told the paper.
As the past weeks of campaigning have shown, his own public relations have been in overdrive.
Need we mention the pre-recorded video messages sent to the masses detailing his initial investment earlier this month?
All just part of the Tattarang experience.
Of course, there is still one tool left in his arsenal yet to be deployed – beyond any earlier offer, blocking stake or the public relations row, the seasoned entrepreneur could always make his own bid for the group.
While the sustainability of the group is a key pillar, no doubt a potential $223m payday for the Benders is hard to argue with.
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Harsh punishment
The origins of the November 2020 ASX outage may still be under wraps, but the market operator this week showed it wasn’t going to let its execs off scot-free.
Recall it was the morning of November 16 when new software prompted “market data issues”, causing the bourse to shut for a whole trading day and prompting an apology from CEO Dominic Stevens.
As well as infuriating traders, the incident raised the ire of ASIC, but as yet any report into the matter has been kept under wraps.
The group’s recently lodged annual report, however, does give some further detail into the fallout, with executives hit with a reduction in the bonus pool as a result of the incident.
Chair of the remuneration committee, Heather Ridout, noted the short-term variable remuneration pool for the entire executive committee was cut by 20 per cent, with some executives directly accountable seeing theirs slashed as much as 40 per cent.
“The board believes this outcome appropriately balances ASX’s strong operational performance, solid financial outcomes and the disruptive impact of the market outage,” Ridout told shareholders.
For the key management variety, that meant an annual bonus of just $400,000 for deputy chief Peter Hiom, surprisingly a boost from the previous year though, and – thanks to his July exit from the firm as decided by “mutual agreement” with the board – paid out in cash.
All up, his pay cheque for the year, including $390,000 in termination payments in lieu of notice, was just over $3.1m, which on balance seems like a pretty good punishment.
He even retains his long-term incentives, worth up to $800,000 in the years ahead.
All that and a new gig at Motive Partners, where he gets to dabble in all things fintech and blockchain.
Not a bad deal if that’s what you’re into.
Stevens, meanwhile, still took home a $1.6m bonus despite the incident, while CFO Gillian Larkins and head of risk Hamish Treleaven both had their incentives trimmed to 80 per cent too.
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Pelligra’s pitch
If buying up scores of key properties across the City of Churches wasn’t enough for developer Ross Pelligra, there’s a new, albeit rather obscure, jewel in his Adelaide crown.
Pelligra, who has long held links to the South Melbourne Football Club, has inked a fresh deal with the Adelaide Crows to take ownership of none other than the local baseball team, the Adelaide Giants.
Hadn’t heard of them?
Well neither had we, but as it turns out their playing roster isn’t half bad with high hopes for finals contention in the upcoming season starting November.
The move adds to Pelligra’s already impressive local property portfolio, which started with his acquisition of the former Holden site back in 2017.
The deal is not his first link to the Crows either.
He picked up Adelaide Arena earlier this year, and has in recent times partnered with the Crows and its chairman John Olsen to develop the Brompton Gasworks site into a team hub.
Only a month ago Crows chief Tim Silvers noted the club’s intention to sell off the baseball licence, citing the pandemic and noting it wasn’t a part of the club’s 18-month strategic recovery plan.
It's an exciting day in Australian baseball, as leading property developer Pelligra is on board as our new owner ⚾ 🥳
— Adelaide Giants Baseball Club (@AdelaideGiants) August 20, 2021
Welcome to the family!
Read more: https://t.co/IaoNHWJuPhpic.twitter.com/axXtbMagv7
The move cements Pelligra as an owner alongside other notable baseball names such as Eileen Bond, former wife of Alan Bond, who owns Perth Heat with local rich lister Rory Vassallo, said to have made his fortunes off a lucrative $65m childcare deal.
Then there are brothers Brett and Shaun Ralph of Jet Couriers who took hold of the Melbourne Aces two years ago, but are better known for their investment in the Melbourne Storm.
More recently, Brendon Major and Illya Mastoris have taken control over the Canberra Cavalry, while question marks still remain on the future of the Sydney Blue Sox.
Never a dull moment in Australian baseball.
inside margin call
Pelligra’s home run with the Adelaide Giants
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