I n c o r p o r a t i n g A U S T R A L A S I A N F O R E S T L O G G E R & S AW M I L L E R DECEMBER 2015 • P: (03) 9888 4834 • www.timberbiz.com.au
Tasmanian treasures rediscovered
Assistance from the sky page 3
page 10
HVP focus on AUSTimber site
T
HE OPERATIONAL site for next year’s AUSTimber (at HVP’s Flynn Plantation near Traralgon) has already been getting special treatment in readiness for the premier forestry industry event. And, according to AUSTimber Events General Manager Laurie Martin, the work currently being done by HVP typifies their normal approach ... “exemplary”. Laurie explained that the soft and hardwood demo sites were each 50X200m (1 ha). “The chipper sites are each 50m wide and will be fed
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Plantation hubs offer more scope
HVP. Both pine and eucalypt stands, easily accessible to Traralgon within HVP’s Flynn plantations 15km south of Traralgon, is a site for a world class forestry exhibition HVP operates 128,000ha of land in the Gippsland region, 80,000ha of plantation (60,000ha pine, 20,000ha eucalypt) and the balance is native forest managed by HVP for conservation and other stewardship projects. The annual sales of plantation logs equates to 1.5M tonnes, which underpins fibre supply to
¢ R epresentatives of live demo exhibitors, AFCA, PF Olsen, HVP and Harry the Hirer at what will be the entry point for visitors to the Forest site expo.
from eucalypts being harvested behind them so there’s no specific limit to the depth of these sites. We’re looking to produce at least 500 tonnes of chips over the course of the event as well as converting roots and slash to bioenergy feedstock,” he said. “The final area of static sites in the forest will depend on numbers booked and topography of the site. Given the overall site has some undulations, we are looking to group static sites to provide “mini destinations” along the way to keep visitors moving while also allowing them opportunities to pause (including siting meet and eat areas and toilets).” The site selection was a collaborative effort with input from AUSTimber Events, Australian Forest Contractors Association, HVP and local Gippsland harvesting contractors working for
Tasmanian field day
major customers (i) Australian Paper Maryvale and (ii) 2 Carter Holt Harvey sawmills at Morwell and Yarram. Like any major player in the industry, HVP is always looking for opportunities to grow its business. Its key fundamental criteria is always generating value for investors; in both (i) strategic fit and (ii) meeting expectations on financial return. Having said this, there is little opportunity to purchase new plantations as the availability in the market place is low and the market has matured. Basically, what makes HVP tick is to grow and sell plantation wood sustainably within very high standards of stewardship by balancing environmental, social and investor outcomes.
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STRATEGICALLY-PLACED plantations hubs around Australia could well prove to be a shot in the arm the forest and timber industry. The hub plan has been spelled out by the Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA) in its policy proposal for the 2016 Budget. The plan centres on promoting plantation investment in 29 ‘Strategic Plantation Hubs’ based on major processing or port sites nationally, to increase the scale of existing resources and boost international competitiveness and downstream processing. According to AFPA calculations, the planting of a modest 30,000 hectares per year over the next 10 years (motivated by such mechanisms as the Emissions Reduction Fund), would capture and store 5 million tonnes per annum or an additional 50 million tonnes over that period. “This is a phenomenal finding which can’t be ignored. It is the equivalent of a ‘450 million trees program’, and would represent by itself more than 5% of the Government’s total economy-wide cumulative abatement task to reduce emissions to 26-28% below 2005 levels by 2030,” said AFPA Chief Executive Officer Ross Hampton. AFPA’s submission also highlighted the larger potential role the forest, wood and paper products industry could play in the area of renewable bioenergy. The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) recently reported that bioenergy output in this country could double over the next five years. The report identifies the high uptake in Europe of bioenergy, where forestry residues and offcuts contribute a massive two-thirds of renewable energy - mostly for generating heat. “Renewable heat is well accepted internationally but lacking in Australia due to a shortcoming in our renewable energy settings. If this changes, ‘renewable thermal’ could be a large contributor to our nation’s ‘green’ energy targets,” he said. “With the right policy settings, the forest products industry could make a far more significant contribution to meeting the emissions reductions goals of the Australian Government, while at the same time providing much needed investment and jobs in forestry and wood and paper manufacturing.”