Team working praised in Norbord expansion
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Public and private forestry collaboration in the Highlands is laying down roots for significant economic opportunity.
That was the claim from Scotland’s rural affairs secretary Fergus Ewing as he visited the Norbord wood panelling plant in Dalcross.
Mr Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, praised the part that Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), Forestry Commission Scotland and Forest Enterprise Scotland played in giving Norbord the confidence to invest £95 million in an ongoing expansion and modernisation programme.
The firm announced its expansion plans last year, upgrading the mill to allow it to effectively double its annual production capacity from around 350,000 cubic feet of oriented strand board (OSB) to 750,000.
Positioning it to meet what it said is a growing demand for OSB across Britain and Europe the company said the move would also help it secure the long-term future of its 130 employees as well as 300 other jobs across the region it says it also indirectly supports.
At the plant Mr Ewing said: "The Scottish Government fully supports this recent expansion programme by Norbord.
"It will bring economic and job creation opportunities for the area and boost the Scottish forestry sector.
"It is a significant investment that is very welcome news, and I am pleased to see the speed with which progress has been made.
"Forestry Commission Scotland’s projections of future timber availability, and Forest Enterprise Scotland’s continued commitment to the long-term wood supply for the plant, have been important elements in this investment decision.
"This significant investment shows what can be achieved when our agencies work closely together to enable the ambition of a key rural business to be realised.
"That Team Scotland approach is vital to our efforts to drive forward the rural economy."
Forest inventory and production forecasts by Forestry Commission Scotland gave long-term projections for the availability of timber in Scotland, helping to demonstrate the potential for forestry businesses.
The current 25-year forecast of total timber volume in Scotland indicates a peak of availability in the early 2030s for the country as a whole.
However, for the north and north-east Scotland regions the forecast predicts a 40 per cent rise over the period, with no drop.
HIE provided a £12 million development grant to Canadian firm Norbord to support its ongoing expansion.
A substantial proportion of the raw materials for the plant is set to come from publicly owned forests.
Norbord has secured two 10-year contracts with Forest Enterprise Scotland that will deliver the extra timber required to support the expansion.
Karl Morris, managing director of Norbord Europe, said: "An investment of this scale is undoubtedly a major undertaking.
"The Forestry Commission Scotland projections for timber supply in the north-east gave us the confidence to embark on our ambitious programme that we anticipate will double production capacity at Dalcross."
Originally built in the 1980s the Dalcross plant was the first one in Europe to manufacture OSB.
It was also the first OSB plant in Europe to receive Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) accreditation, reflecting its commitment to the environment.
Talking about the firm’s expansion plans, Mr Morris said previously: "Our Sterling OSB product manufactured in Inverness is the UK’s leading OSB brand, and with direct road, rail and port access, the reinvested mill will be in an even better position to efficiently serve our customers across the UK and in continental Europe."
He added: "This investment underscores Norbord’s long-term commitment to Inverness and the Highland region, and we look forward to continuing to play an important role in the community."
Former HIE chief executive, Alex Paterson, previously spoke about how the ongoing expansion plan would help to put Norbord "on a sustainable footing for decades to come".
He said: "Norbord is not only a significant local employer in its own right, it also plays an important strategic role in the region’s forestry sector and is a major user of haulage companies and port infrastructure."
