Barita puts 2027 date on real estate cash flow

BARITA Investments expects its real estate platform to begin generating cash from development activity by the end of 2027, giving investors a firmer timeline for when the company expects to start earning from projects now moving through planning and construction.

Chief Executive Officer Ramon Small-Ferguson says a modern warehouse development at Ferry, St Catherine, is likely to be the first project across the line, with the former Eden Gardens lands next, and another two sites already active at different stages of development.

“We do have a fairly small project that we expect to conclude the fastest, which is a modern warehouse that we are commissioning the construction of in Ferry,” Small-Ferguson told investors at the company’s briefing on Wednesday.

“I am anticipating that by the end of next year, certainly, we should either be at the end of that road or very close to the end of that road — and, by extension, realised cash flows from that project.”

He added: “Beyond that, we are anticipating that Eden Gardens is probably next in line and we have two other sites that are active, both from a pre-development perspective and ultimate execution perspective.”

The timeline is significant for Barita, which has built up a portfolio of properties over the last several years but is now trying to move the real estate business beyond gains generated from rising property values and into actual development income.

Management told investors earlier in the briefing that it intends to reduce the weight of revaluation gains in the company’s earnings and increase cash-based revenue as developments on the real estate platform move forward. The company reported a $3.6-billion increase in gains on investment activities for the nine-month period ending June 2026, reflecting both realised investment gains and fair value movements across its equity portfolio and other investments. Barita did not separately disclose how much of that came from real estate.

Small-Ferguson also gave shareholders a first look at the kind of returns Barita is targeting.

“You’re talking about returns anywhere from 25 per cent on the amount invested to 45 per cent — depending on the nature of the real estate — and these are returns on total project cost invested,” he said.

He noted that the return to equity holders can be much higher once debt financing is taken into account, though Barita is not chasing projects with return profiles materially outside that range.

Eden Gardens, one of the more visible properties in the portfolio, is also moving closer to development.

The site has already been cleared and Barita is well advanced with design work, the selection of development partners, and the approvals process. Small-Ferguson said management is now working towards a ground-breaking in 2027.

“We are in heavy pre-development, and what that means is that we are down the road as it relates to design, we’re down the road as it relates to selecting the requisite partners to take the project forward, we’re down the road as it relates to orchestrating approvals,” he said.

“With that in mind…we are anticipating — in terms of timeline — a ground-breaking certainly during the next calendar year, being 2027.”

Management did not disclose the expected investment in Eden Gardens or the specific returns being targeted for that development, saying those figures remain preliminary.

The real estate push forms part of a broader effort by Barita to get more out of assets already sitting on its balance sheet.

Small-Ferguson said the company has been monetising slower-moving assets and redeploying capital into opportunities that offer better liquidity and higher yields, with real estate among the areas being reviewed for asset realisation.

“We’re also continuing down the pathway of monetising and redeploying capital,” he said. “So when you look at things like our real estate exposure, we have initiatives surrounding asset realisation and redeploying those monies into more liquid, high-yielding opportunities.”