PaperlinX raises the bar for Maryvale capital investment

Australian Paper CEO David Goldthorp claims that one-off equipment upgrades are not enough to ensure the economic viability of the regional mill, revealing in the latest edition of Pulp & Paper Edge that the company requires “a broad change to the holistic practices at the mill.”

The first condition attached to the future of the Maryvale Mill is cooperation from the workers, with Australian Paper demanding a boost in skill levels and more flexible work practices. Goldthorp is endeavouring to keep the workers in the loop and has already spoken with Maryvale employees on all three shifts. One particular demand is that the facility's three separate pulping operations be merged into a single system, managed by multi-skilled staff.

Australian Paper also insists on an agreement with the CFMEU to ensure there will be no delays during the construction phase – if it decides to go ahead. A commercial agreement is also being sought with a third party to establish plantations to provide input for the mill, involving the planting of 20,000 hectares of hardwood over an eight to ten year period.

The final item necessary for the approval of the project is support from both state and federal governments. Access to wood and water has been nominated as a factor crucial to the mill's development. The company is looking for secure access to native timber during the time when the new plantations are being developed.

Some of the proposed changes to the Maryvale Mill entail a shift from softwood-based production to eucalyptus and pine, and in an attempt to shore up the mill's environmental feasibility, the replacement of elemental chlorine with the more eco-friendly Elemental Chlorine Free Lite. An increase in the use of plantation timbers over native forest wood will also be pursued.

Pulp & Paper Edge is a monthly publication released by Industry Edge.Subscribe to the latet edition www.industryedge.com.au.