Institutional investors have gobbled up a large chunk of 46.8 million PGG Wrightson shares after receivers of Craig Norgate’s Rural Portfolio Investments moved quickly to liquidate assets.

Trading in Rural Portfolio Capital, the investment vehicle of Craig Norgate and Baird McConnon, has been suspended after the company said it has breached its trust deed.

RPC has $60 million preference shares on issue, which are under the guarantee of sister company Rural Portfolio Investments (RPI).

In a stock exchange announcement this morning, RPC said the preference shares would be cancelled but the move won't affect the claims holders have for the amounts owed to them.

Rural services company PGG Wrightson said today it had allotted all shares in its rights offer, raising about $180.7 million.

Chairman Keith Smith said it was an excellent result for PGW to have successfully completed the rights issue before the New Year.

"This has allowed PGW to repay $200 million of bank debt and recapitalise the business well ahead of schedule. This is an exceptional outcome for PGW and all stakeholders and places the business in a strong position looking forward to 2010."

Chinese seeds and research company Agria, will buy about half of Rural Portfolio Investments' rights entitlement with PGG Wrightson for an undisclosed sum.

Rural Portfolio Investments (RPI), the investment vehicle for former Fonterra chief executive Craig Norgate and Baird McConnon, initiated a trading halt this afternoon.

Mr Norgate said he could say little pending an announcement to the NZX this afternoon.

When exercised, the rights will cost Agria about $25 million to move to a shareholding of 19%.

Rural Portfolio Investments is scaling back its stake in New Zealand biggest rural supplies and services company PGG Wrightson.

Today PGG Wrightson announced a renouncable rights issue of more than 400 million shares to generated $180 million as part of a new capital raising plan. It will be issues at a ratio of nine new shares for every eight already held.

Rural services and supplies company PGG Wrightson has announced a renouncable rights issue of more than 400 million shares to generate $180 million under a new capital raising plan.

The company was put on a trading hold earlier this morning pending the announcement.

Majority shareholder Pyne Gould Corporation and Rural Portfolio Capital, partly owned by Craig Norgate and Baird McConnon's Rural Portfolio Investments (RPI) are also in trading halts this morning.