A defeat in court over the failed purchase of land containing a koala corridor may cost Lendlease Corporation up to A$100 million (US$59 million).
This is the value at risk revealed by the integrated real estate business after it could not buy land excluded from a $1.06 billion property sale announced last year.
Lendlease says the court judgment prevented it from exercising its contractual rights over land excluded from the sale of 12 Australian master-planned Communities projects to Stockland Corporation and its partner Supalai Australia Holdings in November 2024.
The company told the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) that although discussions with the landowner continued and it believed a revised agreement was in the best interests of both parties, it would appeal against the decision.
The value at risk should Lendlease be unable to secure the land parcels through the appeal or a revised agreement would be up to $100 million after tax, representing the write-off of costs capitalised over the last 10 years in relation to planning, rezoning and site-wide infrastructure spending.
“On the basis that this matter is satisfactorily resolved before reporting FY25 (2025 financial year) results there is no impact on FY25 earnings guidance,” Lendlease said in an ASX announcement.
The rights to the land parcels, which were affected by environmental issues including maintaining and constructing koala movement corridors, were acquired in 2015 as part of the Figtree Hill project near Campbell town in New South Wales.
In November 2024 Lendlease announced it had completed the sale of the projects to Stockland and Supalai Australia, in a deal that brought total capital for recycling initiatives to $1.8 billion in the 2025 financial year.
At the time Lendlease said it remained in discussions with a landowner about additional land which no longer formed part of the sale as relevant conditions had not been met.
Shares in Lendlease (ASX: LLC) closed 16 cents or 3% higher at $5.50 on Tuesday, giving the company a market capitalisation of $3.8 billion.
