U.S. investor leads Southern Sudan land lease deal

By Megan Davies

NEW YORK, Jan 12 (Reuters) - A U.S. investor who previously worked for insurance firm American International Group Inc (AIG.N) has led a deal to lease a substantial amount of farm land in Southern Sudan, where he sees ripe opportunity for investment and development.

Philippe Heilberg, chairman and CEO of New York-based investment firm Jarch Capital, told Reuters on Monday he expected high returns from the approximately 400,000 hectares of land in Mayom county and anticipated Jarch being involved with the land for "decades".

He declined to say how much had been paid for the lease.

Jarch said in an emailed statement that agriculture in Southern Sudan is exempted from U.S. sanctions provided that the Government of Sudan in Khartoum does not have any interest and no imports or exports pass through nonexempt areas. Jarch said it will only deal in Southern Sudan.

Heilberg said Jarch felt comfortable investing in Mayon and that the local politicians and population would be accepting of the investment.

"With risk, you have to look at risk and reward together -- this is why we pick our areas very carefully," he said.

Africa's biggest country has suffered decades of strife. Its north-south war -- separate from the conflict in its Darfur region -- was Africa's longest civil war and claimed the lives of some two million people.

A north-south peace deal was struck in 2005 and a semi- autonomous south Sudan government was then formed with the right to vote on secession by 2011.