Alex Karp buys 37,000 acres of Swedish forest for $22M; why hunters are barred

Palantir CEO Alex Karp has purchased 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of forest in Härjedalen, Sweden, through his newly registered company Cladonia Skog AB. As reported by Swedish newspaper Tidningen Härjedalen, the sale was reportedly for 235 million kronor, or $22 million. As per the report, hunters in the region had received notifications in the mail alerting them they could no longer lease the land to hunt south of the quiet village of Storsjö Kapell, known for its hiking and fishing. The sale was later confirmed by Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget (SCA), a paper manufacturer that previously owned the land.Why hunters can no longer enter the forest that Alex Karp boughtIn an emailed statement to Fortune then, SCA spokesperson Robert Östholm said: “We grant hunting rights through lease agreements with a term of approximately 11 months. This means that the agreements can be reviewed and renewed on an annual basis”.“As we have now sold the land in question, we can of course no longer grant hunting rights on it, as the land is no longer owned by us”.Jenny Lopes Da Silva, a board member of Cladonia and a sales manager at Scandinavian Trust, said in a statement said “The new owner of the forest property is committed to the beauty of the land and its preservation. The vast, natural forest landscapes offer valuable habitats for plants and animals, while also serving as a place for recreation and restoration.”Alex Karp had long ties with Sweden through his company Palantir, which has a partnership with Swedish defense authorities. The company expanded its software-development offering in Europe about a decade ago. However, the EU’s continued use of the company’s services has raised concerns given Europe’s plans to break itself off the US technology and AI.