P'Petual Holdings is a 12 hectare producer, packer, and marketer of hydroponically produced vegetables. Back in 2022, the owners of P'Petual Holdings appointed a team to find an investor partner for the South Australia-based company. Now, it was announced property fund manager Centuria Capital Group acquired the facility for $21.5 million (€13m). P’Petual Holdings continues to operate the asset, and plans to expand with another four-hectare glasshouse.
P’Petual was established in November 1997 and is an industry pioneer in greenhouse farming in Australia. The company is one of the largest greenhouse vegetable growers in Australia, with greenhouses located in Buckland Park on the Adelaide Plains, 32 kilometres north of the city of Adelaide in South Australia. In their facility, which includes 6 hectare of double-skinned plastic greenhouse, and 6 hectare of glasshouses, the team grows and markets a wide variety of greenhouse tomatoes, cucumbers and eggplants year round.
The Sydney-based Centuria Capital Group, listed on the Australian stock exchange ASX-listed, is an investment manager with $21 billion in funds under management. The company acquired the property via its open-ended, unlisted Centuria Agriculture Fund (CAF), which is primarily focused on investing in precision farming assets, or more specifically, protected cropping.
"The glasshouse facility provides 12ha of protected cropping on a 59-ha site", the team with Centuria confirms. The company is located approximately 38 kilometres north of the Adelaide CBD near the town of Virginia, in an area known as the food bowl of South Australia due to its extensive horticultural production. It is seven kilometres inland from the St Vincent Gulf.
"The facility includes 6ha of glasshouses and 6ha of double-skinned plastic greenhouses, plus packaging sheds, with the capacity to produce and package about 1,488 tonnes of tomatoes, 136 tonnes of cucumbers, 517 tonnes of eggplants and 43 tonnes of capsicums a year."
P’Petual has agreed a 10-year triple-net lease with annual rent escalations with Centuria.
Jason Huljich, Centuria Joint CEO, says the Adelaide Plains acquisition is aligned with CAF’s investment strategy to acquire high-quality agricultural assets, leased to reputable operators with strong ESG credentials and in higher revenue producing sectors such as protected cropping.”
Andrew Tout, Centuria Head of Agriculture, added, “Centuria is excited about this recent acquisition, which provides an exceptional opportunity for P’Petual to scale-up and implement operational efficiencies. It is another great example of Centuria partnering and collaborating with seasoned agricultural innovators.”
They add P'Petuals sustainability credentials extend to robust water management through recycled rainwater and surplus water, recycling carbon emissions, and integrated pest management via the introduction of “good insects” into the greenhouse facilities to combat unwanted insects.
"The acquisition also includes a Development Application (DA) approval for an additional four-hectare glasshouse, providing a value-added opportunity to further enhance our size and footprint in the agricultural real estate sector."