Active Energy confident that latest forestry venture is legitimate

Active Energy Group (AEG) said it remains confident of its latest forestry venture's legal validity, reiterating the sentiment posted in its annual report last week.The venture, which will be carried out with a native group from Canada, comes as Alberta's Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs is due to rule on breaches of the Metis Settlements Act by AEG's partners in the next month.However, the company assured investors that its partners had acted in accordance with the act's legislation and predicted that moves to assess assessment bids from companies interested in forestry land would go ahead without interruption.AEG owns 45% of the KAQUO Forestry & Natural Resources Development Corporation, with the remaining majority stake held by native Métis representitives."The Métis people have a long and honourable history, and I have every confidence that the KAQUO joint venture will allow the selected investor to imminently invest, which will enable the creation of hundreds of local jobs and empower the Métis Settlements of Northern Alberta to achieve financial independence and become proud contributors to Alberta's economy," said chief executive Richard Spinks.As of 9:15 BST, AEG was trading 3.9% higher at 5.6p.