Forestry companies invest a combined $110 million into South East, securing industry’s future
A COMBINED $110 million will be poured into two South East sawmills, securing the future of 500 factory jobs and highlighting the region’s reputation as a world leader in forestry.
A COMBINED $110 million will be poured into two South-East sawmills, securing the future of 500 factory jobs and highlighting the region’s reputation as a world leader in forestry.
The investments by Timberlink and OneFortyOne Plantations shows confidence in the industry – the region’s largest employer, providing 7000 jobs and $1.2 billion for the local economy.
Timberlink will spend $90 million on its Tarpeena mill over the next three years to increase its processing capacity by nearly 20 per cent, to support the nation’s construction industry.
OneFortyOne Plantations will invest $19.4 million into Mt Gambier’s Jubilee Highway mill to achieve greater efficiencies by extracting more log fibre.
Timberlink chief executive Ian Tyson said their investment would ensure the business stayed internationally competitive and secured it as one of Australasia’s leading softwood sawmillers.
“If anyone wanted to see a modern softwood sawmill anywhere in the world, they could come here in three years’ time and see the best one could be,” Mr Tyson said.
“We’ve also added $40 million into the site over the last five years (since being acquired), so we’ve got a long-term commitment to the industry, the site and our people.”
The investment includes improvements to on-site safety and the installation of a new saw line, stacker and edger, an additional contraflow and batch kilns for drying timber.
Two hundred local contractors will be required to work on the installations, which will allow the company to move 120,000 tonnes of extra logs through the mill, once completed.
“This investment will increase capacity by just short of 20 per cent, but by the time we finish, we will have increased the mill capacity by nearly 80 per cent,” Mr Tyson said. “This is a generational change. We are transforming a business that was good into something that is world-class.”
Meanwhile, OneFortyOne has reaffirmed its commitment to investing in the Mt Gambier mill, after it was acquired from Carter Holt Harvey last year and began trading as OneFortyOne Products in January.
Over the next year, the company will commission an additional 61 sorter bins, to be installed by 50 local contractors, and invest in a boiler emissions project and other machinery.
Sawmill general manager Paul Hartung expected efficiencies and improvements in OneForty-One’s whole supply chain and stressed none of the mill’s 300 jobs would go. “When you extract more fibre out of the logs, that’s more volume of timber that needs to be processed, so we’re not laying off people,” Mr Hartung said.
“What this means is for every 1 per cent of (fibre) recovery, it’s worth $1.4 million a year to a mill of this size.
“Considering OneFortyOne acquired the mill in January … to invest $20 million over 12 months shows a great deal of confidence to employees at the site.”
OneFortyOne holds the 105-year lease over the Green Triangle forest estate comprising more than 80,000ha, which the Labor Government sold for $670 million in 2012.
The Liberal Government has previously said it wanted to facilitate the expansion of the plantation estate and grow domestic timber manufacturing.
In the 2018-19 Budget, $8.5 million was allocated to forestry, which included a new Forest Industry Advisory Council to meet regularly with Primary Industries Minister Tim Whetstone.
“The direct link from industry to Government has been somewhat fractured over a long period of time and there’s been a high level of distrust with the Government, particularly with the forward sale of forest rotations,” Mr Whetstone said.
“It’s left a bitter taste in the mouth of the industry and the people who live around the forests, so we’ve come into Government with clean hands and are looking to work much closer with industry.”