Sanford escapes 'headaches'

By PAULA OLIVER

Fishing giant Sanford is not disappointed at missing out on hooking half of main competitor Sealord.

Sealord's future was decided on Tuesday, when the Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Commission took on a Japanese partner to buy Brierley Investments' 50 per cent stake in the company for $207 million.

The deal left Sanford and its joint-venture partner, Talleys, out in the cold, after they had earlier gained Commerce Commission approval to make the purchase. Theirs was the only local attempt.

Throughout the protracted negotiations, price was always seen as the stumbling block for many potential buyers, and Sanford chairman Douglas Goodfellow confirmed yesterday that had been the case for his company.

"If we could have bought it at our price, it would have been a good deal," he told Sanford's annual general meeting.

"But we couldn't get it at our price, and frankly there would have been a lot of headaches in it."

His comments were the first made by Sanford about the Sealord sale process, and managing director Eric Barratt still refuses to comment.

Mr Goodfellow said that Talleys had put far more work into the bid than Sanford, and he knew they were disappointed.

Sealord's biggest asset was its quota, Mr Goodfellow said.

The deal between the Fisheries Commission and Nissui drew some flak yesterday for its unique structure, which sees all of Sealord's fishing quota go into Maori hands.

It is still subject to Overseas Investment Commission approval, but given that the quota remains locally held, it seems unlikely to be halted.

But one industry insider, who did not want to be named, suggested yesterday that the deal could almost be seen as too clever by those who made the approval decision. That may work against it.

Under the arrangement, the Fisheries Commission will lease its quota back to Sealord for a price that they will not reveal on the grounds of commercial sensitivity.

That price could be as little as nothing, say some industry players.

Talleys Fisheries director Michael Talley also broke his silence on the deal yesterday, saying that it seemed there had been a campaign to get the Government's approval.

"It would have been nice to see it as a completely New Zealand company," he said.

Another industry player who did not want to be named questioned why the deal was still worth $200 million, the original asking price, when no quota was exchanged.

Overseas Investment Commission chief executive Stephen Dawe will report to Fisheries Minister Pete Hodgson and Finance Minister Michael Cullen.

The ministers are expected to decide whether to approve the deal early in the New Year.