Land Status
All properties are titled in the Public Registry of Panama in the name of the Foundation, free of lien.

Legal Structure
Fundación Forestal Tupisa was founded under the pertinent laws of Panama in 2003 for the purpose of acquiring the farm by transfer from its previous corporate owners. A foundation enjoys certain legal advantages over a corporation which were attractive to the owners, such as more protection for its assets, more confidentiality, no need for a license to operate, the Founder can be the unique or one among several beneficiaries as well as be on the Foundation Council, and others. The law firm PEREZ-CARRERA Y CO. is the legal representative and Registered Agent (a Panamanian legal requirement) of the Foundation. The farm complies with all local laws: labor, health, and fiscal. The audited legal books and general bookkeeping are constantly updated. An annual report on the status of the plantation and the investment involved is prepared which constitutes a detailed technical and financial history of the farm and plantings from 1992 to the present. The Foundation and the finca are debt-free.

Tax Benefits
The farm is solely dedicated to reforestation and the trees are registered in the name of Fundación Forestal Tupisa at the national reforestation program center (Autoridad Nacional del Ambiente, ANAM) under the Registro Forestal No. ARAD-007-2007. This, along with Panama’s signatory participation in the Kyoto Protocol of 1998, makes Finca Tupisa eligible for several tax exonerations. Net gains from the sale of timber are tax-exempt and the land where reforestation is carried out is exempt from land taxes. Equipment used for reforestation projects may also be imported tax-free under certain conditions. The annual Tasa Unica (US$300) is not exempt.

Management
The farm is currently managed by Alice I. Kittredge with the technical assistance of Forestry Engineer Luis H. Cordoba and the field assistance of Luis Zaera, and the services of an accountant. There are three permanent on-site workers, one of whom lives at the farm itself. There is an abundant labor force in the area for all farming tasks at wages which average US$7-8 per day. The staff visits the farm 1-2 times a month and there is telephone communication three times a week with the permanent worker who lives in Yaviza. This management team would be available to assist a new owner if desired.

Projected Revenues
Most of Finca Tupisa’s wood is for the local market (cedars, roble, espavé, cativo). The mahogany and teak are more attractive to the international market. An estimated gross value for the present plantings (excepting the newly planted teak) in ten to twelve years, given an approximate value of US$250 per 25-30 year-old tree (minus the trees removed in two interim thinnings), would be around US$7,000,000. The 4,800 newly planted teak in ten to twelve years would have an appreciated (not necessarily market) value of approximately US$300,000 and in 25-30 years an estimated gross value at US$275/tree (after thinnings) of another US$1,000,000. The costs of thinning and timbering are not estimated here.