Friday Offcuts – 6 June 2008
Gunns' chairman John Gay said that the mill is still on schedule and that project financing wasn't dependent on ANZ's participation. The move is on now to assemble a syndicate of local and overseas banks to fill the void. Some analysts have commented that in the current global credit squeeze it will be hard to win backers. But there have also been reports out this week saying that with wood shortages and pulp mill closures in Europe, that some European banks are now showing an interest in financing the venture. As expected, Gunns' share price dropped after the announcement and of course opponents to the mill are now vowing to lobby banks not to back the project. In New Zealand - not much this week on the Emissions Trading Scheme which has tended to dominate the news for the last month or two. The industry - and country however is looking anxiously at the skies for more rain as we move into winter. So much for forward planning and security of supply. A season of reduced rainfall in critical catchments in New Zealand has left hydro lakes at their lowest levels since the power crisis of 1992. What's more they are perilously close to minimum storage, below which no hydrogenation is allowed. Energy Minister, David Parker remains blithely confident that no crisis is imminent. I predict all Kiwis and kiwi businesses though will be welcoming the rain dump predicted for the country this coming weekend. Enjoy the deluge.
This week we have for you:
2008 NZ Forest Products Map just released
On the 98cm high by 68cm wide map, over 140 sawmills (with levels of sawn production), all fibreboard, particleboard, plywood, pulp & paper, veneer and paperboard mills along with wood manufacturing operations are shown. Planted production forests greater than 500ha are shown, with forests greater than 1500ha named and the indigenous forest estate also incorporated for reference. A complimentary copy of the new map, the fourth edition of this very popular resource, was inserted into the May issue of the magazine Inwood Australasia. The maps have also been distributed by partners of the map to their key customers. For those who haven't yet got a copy of this latest up-to-date industry reference, please find attached an order form.
Gunns loses financial backer for pulp projectThe Australian financial institution ANZ has confirmed that it has withdrawn as lead financier for Gunns' controversial AU$1.7 billion pulp mill scheme in northern Tasmania. "ANZ will not be participating in the provision of project finance for Gunns' proposed Bell Bay pulp mill in Tasmania.Due to client confidentiality, we are not in a position to comment further on this decision," the bank said in a statement last week. However, Gunns insisted that the project is on schedule, with strong international interest in financing the 1.1 million tonne/yr bleached softwood and hardwood kraft pulp plant. "Project financing for the mill is not dependent on ANZ participation in the banking syndicate," Gunns chairman John Gay said. "The company has a long-term and continuing corporate banking relationship with ANZ [and we are] proceeding to finalize the arrangement of finance facilities for the project," he added. Sources said talks to assemble a syndicate of several local and overseas banks were under way. ANZ, Gunns' banker for 22 years, was to provide up to AU$150 million for the scheme. ANZ's announcement follows speculation in recent weeks that it had decided to withdraw its financial backing of the controversial project. Source: RISI
6-legged harvester from outer space?Check this out. The promotions around the video clip say "while this six-legged vehicle may look like some kind of alien life form, it's actually a prototype vehicle for moving felled trees. The legs allow it to move through more unstable and varied terrain than wheeled or tracked vehicles, as it can just step right over any obstacles it encounters. To view this new harvester, look at dvice.com. Fact or fiction?
Boom in forestry plantings in NSWIt was reported last week that forestry plantings in NSW have increased seven fold in just six years climbing from 3200 ha in 2000-01 to 23,350 ha in 2006-07. As in other States, the increase has largely come through large scale investment through managed investment schemes which have accounted for about 85% of the new areas planted. Nationally, the plantation estate in Australia has increased on average by 62,000 ha a year since 1994.
Forestry boosting lower South Island local economy
Although the present economic climate is creating a challenging environment for the New Zealand forestry sector, particularly with high exchange rates, freight costs and a depressed housing market in the USA, the trees coming on stream indicate the sector will endure long into the future. From the current harvest of about 1.5 million cubic metres, the industry has the potential to sustainably increase production to 2.6 to 2.8 million cubic metres a year in the early 2020's. Most of this increase will come from small to medium size forests established in the 1990's by individuals, farmers, partnerships and smaller corporates. What is particularly good news for the region in the long-term, is the growing supply of Douglas-fir; a timber with a strong domestic and international reputation. Extensive planting over the past 15 years means that the harvest will increase from the current level of around 100,000 cubic metres a year, to more than 400,000 cubic metres a year by 2025. The combined Otago/Southland region currently has 215,700 hectares of forest, according to a new report from MAF and the Southern Wood Council "Otago/Southland Forest Industry and Wood Availability Forecasts." The plantation estate in Otago and Southland has doubled in size over the past 25 years and the region is the most diversified in commercial forest species. The region has almost half of all Douglas-fir and 43 percent of all eucalypt plantings nationally. The new forecasts provide councils and roading authorities with credible information for future planning. Co-ordinating this growth in timber supply will be a major focus for the industry and for infrastructure agencies in coming years. MAF and the Southern Wood Council have two weeks of meetings planned with local Councils, planning staff and media to outline key findings of the new report along with implications to the industry and local economy. The full report can now be downloaded off the SWC website, www.southernwoodcouncil.co.nz
NZ Wood messages find acceptance with consumers
NZ Wood has developed a range of information resources detailing amongst other things, the environmental benefits of using wood in construction and has run advertising across trade publications, television, billboards and selected internet sites. The television campaign is regarded as being highly successful, as over 70 percent recalled seeing the advertisement which screened for the first time on 4 February. "We are trying to tell the wood story as clearly and as often as we can, and the story is very simple. Wood is our most renewable raw material. It stores carbon both in trees and in wood products. It is a key defence in the fight against climate change, says Geoff Henley, Programme Manager for NZ Wood. Now that we have established in the public mind that wood does these things, we now have to convince people that these are very good reasons to use wood and those messages will be at the heart of the next stage of the programme. This online survey will be taken every three months to check progress. Other testing will also be undertaken over the next two years as the programme rolls out.
Forestry Summit supports Ronald McDonald Family RetreatA charity auction in association with STIHL at the upcoming Forest Industry Strategic Summit in July will provide an opportunity for forest managers and contractors to show their generous side. Funds from the charity auction will go towards the first Ronald McDonald Family Retreat, which will be built in Rotorua. The retreat will provide families and their seriously-ill children with a free and comfortable holiday destination when they need it the most and often can least afford it. Families of sick children will be allowed one week to enjoy a holiday together. On behalf of the forest industry Jochen Speer of STIHL said they were pleased to be supporting such a good cause.The auction takes place during the Forestry Summit dinner on 22nd July where there will also be time for plenty of networking and socialising. The event is already attracting many of the key players in the New Zealand industry. Registrations are flowing in now - and the deadline for early bird discounts closes next week - on 13th June. Speakers from both the New Zealand industry and internationally are busy preparing for what is going to be THE key event on the 2008 calendar for the forestry and forest products supply chain. There has also plenty of interest from contractors in the Australian as well. To register go to www.woodsupplychain.com or call Libby Stulen on 07 921 1382.
US shows huge jump in wind installationsMore than 1400MW of new wind energy capacity, costing US$3 billion, was installed in the US in the first quarter of 2008 - up from just 124MW in the same period of 2007, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). AWEA attributed the breakneck pace of installation partly to the expiration at the end of this year of the Production Tax Credit (PTC) - a crucial renewable energy support mechanism - and to the industry finally hitting its stride, an AWEA spokeswoman said.Last year saw a record 5249MW installed in the US, and this quarter's growth brings total wind capacity to more than 18,000MW. Almost 3,000MW was installed in the last three months of 2007, with the second and third quarters each accounting for just over 1000MW of new capacity.
2008 Australian Timber Design Awards open
Last year's overall award winner was the Melbourne firm of architects, Hayball Leonard Stent, with their Moonah Lakes Lodges. All details of this project and of other category winners are available in the 2007 Winners section of the website. Source: TDA Newsletter May 2008
Scanning options for the optimized edger evaluated
As way of an explanation to readers on scanning systems on offer. Transverse board scanners are either differential (top and bottom) or top only. Boards are normally conveyed thru the transverse scanner on a lugged chain or between hook stops on a slick chain. The most common scan heads have multiple point lasers being viewed by a line image camera that is synchronized to the scan chain by an encoder. Some configurations of the multipoint scanners include a thru beam light-curtain with beams every 5 to 10mm to improve width and length resolution. An alternate transverse scanning method uses a line laser profiling heads. After the flitch is scanned, it's positioned and skewed above the feed chain, and the edger positions its saws to the determined cutting patterns. Press-rolls then force the flitch onto the chain. The flitch is then driven straight through the edger. At the edger out-feed there are a pickers that allow the boards to be kept, and the edgings to be dropped out. A slewing lineal scanned edger takes a different approach. The flitch is fed onto a belt without any precision positioning. The flitch is then scanned as it travels on a conveyor belt towards the edger. The scanning is generally done by a pair line laser profiling scan heads. The optimizer determines the optimal cutting pattern, and the saws are angled and positioned. The board remains on the belt right up to the edger in-feed. The edger then slews the saws to match the angle of the cut as the flitch moves through the saws. At the edger out-feed, the pickers are also slewed to remain under the boards. In a lineal system, the sensors are a small part of the total system costs, and the designs are driven more by simplicity, reliability, scan density and accuracy. The scanning technology is almost exclusively laser line profiling. The basic technology is little changed from what was used 15 years ago, but over the years it has become less expensive, faster, more accurate and more reliable. Most lineal scanning systems are top only, and require the flitches to be turned wane up before being loaded onto the belt. The scan zones consist of a pair of scanners looking toward the belt in a V formation. It is important that the board have been loaded on the belt far enough upstream that it is fully steady before entering the scan zone. Recently there has been a strong push for short in-feed lineal scanning. This is accomplished by adding additional scan zones. Costs have limited how many zones could be affordably used. Recently, multiple line sensors have been used to provide cost effective systems with full profile scanning in as little as 150mm of travel. There have been other attempts to work around the problems of transverse scanned edger without requiring the long scan belt and slewing edger of a lineal system. One that has been around for some time is the clamp and scan. Another interesting technique to be presented by Crosby Machine at ScanTech 2008 scans the flitch in place at the edger in-feed and then positions it. The very latest developments in the mill will be discussed with most major sawmilling companies in both New Zealand and Australia shortly. For more information on this two yearly programme, see www.scantech2008.com
Monorail for timber haulage proposedABC has reported this week on a plan that could revolutionise the transport of timber. American technology company International Innovations has presented the Bombala Shire Council with a plan for a monorail linking the southern Monaro's softwood plantations, a proposed new timber mill at Bombala and the far south coast chip mill near Eden in NSW. The company says that they could build the new monorail for AU$1 million a kilometre - a figure well under the cost of constructing a major road.
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...and one to end the week on...the divorce letter
Dear wife: And on that note, have a great weekend. Cheers. We welcome comments and contributions on Friday Offcuts. For details on advertising for positions within the forest products industry or for products and services, either within the weekly newsletter or on this web page, please contact us.
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