Seven Group Holdings’ Ryan Stokes backs in 2050 gas strategy, upbeat on WesTrac growth

Seven Group Holdings managing director Ryan Stokes says the business “wholeheartedly” agrees with the Federal Government’s Future Gas Strategy and sees the energy investment thematic as underappreciated more broadly.

Mr Stokes on Thursday briefed the Macquarie Australia Conference on the expanding diversified investment business as it closes out its takeover of concrete manufacturer and building products supplier Boral.

The update to analysts and investors also came after Federal Resources Minister Madeleine King laid out the Government’s gas strategy, an announcement backing in gas as an “important source of energy” as Australia works towards net-zero by 2050.

Mr Stokes said he agreed with the Government’s call to revisit the importance of gas in Australia’s strategic future. SGH has exposure to the resource through its 30 per cent foothold in listed developer Beach Energy and other gas field interests.

“I see today the (Federal) Government repositioned the importance of gas to the strategic future of the country, we wholeheartedly agree,” he said.

“We think it’s critical to the renewable journey, I think probably it hasn’t been as well appreciated that to support renewables, you need gas as a firming resource.”

He said there had been a “challenge around execution” for Beach, which has had to push back production plans and field cost blowouts, but was optimistic the company was well-placed in the longer-term with new management at the helm.

“We like energy as a thematic, we think it’s underappreciated at this point in time.”

Mr Stokes was also upbeat on the trajectory of its Caterpillar dealership division WesTrac, which has enjoyed solid growth in recent years.

“I think that operating mentality that we’ve delivered over probably about after five or six years now, it’s really enshrined in throughout our business leaders and through that into our businesses, and that constant focus on driving incremental performance, incremental improvement each day,” he said.

Mr Stokes said he was expecting the Boral transaction, where SGH has been sweeping up the remainder of shares in the company it doesn’t already own, to close at the end of the financial year.

SGH has a major stake in Seven West Media, publisher of The Nightly.