ONE MARYVALE PULP PLANT TO CLOSE

Opal will close one of its three pulp plants at its Maryvale mill, as the repercussions of the forced closure of its 200,000 tonnes a year white paper manufacturing operation continue to reverberate.

The Nippon Paper subsidiary is now applying for a DA for the permanent reconfiguration of the Maryvale site from three pulp plants to two pulp plants.

It is also aiming to transition to the preferred Continuous Kraft Mill and Neutral Sulphate Semi Chemical operating configuration.

The company says the move means changes are required to the operating licence and discharge limits associated with the changes and closure of the white pulp and paper manufacturing facilities.

Opal was forced to close its entire white paper manufacturing operation in January, as the consequence of a Supreme Court ruling in favour of a local possum species, whose well-being was allegedly being threatened by Opal’s logging contractor’s activities.

Since then the mill has closed two of its five paper manufacturing lines, made staff redundant, and seen the 200,000 tonnes of paper, split roughly 50/50 between printing grades and copier papers, have to be imported. The best-selling Australian Reflex copier brand is no more, now replaced by overseas papers.