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Major US-based agribusiness group Limoniera has announced the appointment of Mark Palamountain as chief financial officer, treasurer and corporate secretary.

Palamountain, who will take over the group’s finances on 8 January 2018, replaces Joe Rumley, who announced his decision to pursue other opportunities on 26 September after serving in the role since 2010.

Palamountain, who joined Limoneira in 2012, most recently served as senior director of agriculture operations, helping to build and manage “a deep pipeline of acquisition activities”, and successfully completing the “acquisition of 3,000 new acres (1,200ha)”, Limoneira said in a company statement.

In addition to this, Palamountain created and implemented Limoneira’s ‘Net Zero’ renewable energy expansion portfolio, managed capital growth strategies and acreage redevelopment programmes and worked directly on all investor relations activities, the group said.

Prior to joining Limoneira, Palamountain was CEO and founder of Perpetual Power, a solar integration company specialising in finance and product technology.

“We are excited about Mark’s transition to the role of chief financial officer and would like to thank Joe for his work in establishing a strong financial reporting infrastructure at Limoneira,” said Harold Edwards, Limoneira’s president and chief executive officer.

“Mark has been a valued member of our leadership team in his nearly six years with the company, leading our business development efforts and renewable energy initiatives, as well as managing our agriculture operations.”

“Combined with his background in capital markets, he will be well suited to execute the company’s capital allocation framework and ensure we are maximising value for shareholders.”

Headquartered in Santa Paula, California, Limoneira has over 11,200 acres (4,500ha) of agricultural land, real estate properties and water rights spanning California, Arizona and Chile. The company is a leading producer of lemons, avocados, oranges and specialty citrus.