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Thousands of tonnes of windblown sawlogs that were dragged out of the Wombat Forest have been left to split and rot, despite Victoria’s few remaining timber mills pleading to use them for flooring, stair treads and other high-value products. Source: Peter Hunt, Weekly Times In a bizarre twist, timber mill operators say bureaucrats within the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action would rather the logs were left to split this summer, rendering them useless for anything apart from firewood. Former timber industry operator Gayle McCarthy said: “These logs could have been milled and put into housing, but now they will be burnt putting more smoke into the atmosphere.” “They’ve been felled and left in the paddock with no water (to prevent splitting), so they’re going to crack, which is a waste of taxpayers’ money,” Mrs McCarthy said. Timber mill operators say DEECA is telling them the government’s decision to shut down its native forest manager VicForests on June 30 last year, meant it no longer had the legislative means to sell logs. But while DEECA has had more than a year to solve the problem, the mills say DEECA policy makers are stalling, paranoid of the political backlash from environment groups if log trucks are once again seen on Victorian highways. One mill operator said it felt like there were two parts to DEECA, “one that wants active forest management and to work out a plan”, while the other part “refuses to act”. Agriculture Minister Ros Spence failed to respond to questions on the stockpile. Meanwhile timber mills are reporting thousands of hardwood plantation logs being stockpiled at Opal’s Maryvale paper mill, which are mainly used for white paper manufacturing. Opal’s mill produced its last ream of white copy paper on January 21, 2023, but plantation industry sources say it has  been forced to keep taking logs under a long-term supply contract it has with Hancock Victorian Plantations Holdings. An Opal spokeswoman said: “Opal manufactures kraft and recycled brown papers, which use both soft wood and hardwood as an input”, and that “wood stock volumes… fluctuate according to production”. However workers at the plant said the hardwood plantation logs made up “a very small percentage that goes into (brown paper) processing now”. Opal was forced to shut down its Reflex white paper lines following the Victorian Labor Government’s decision to end native forest harvesting, which supplied low grade hardwood logs to the mill. One mill operator said the plantation hardwood stockpile that now sat in Opal’s yards was just another example of the waste inflicted on the industry by the government. Meanwhile Ms McCarthy said there were still thousands more windblown logs lying on the forest floor in the wake of the 2021 storm, which was not only a waste but posed a massive fire risk.

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The Hyne Group, through its growing Hyne Pallets division, has acquired long-term customer Newcastle Pallets. Source: Timberbiz As Hyne continues to deliver on its acquisition strategy focussed on sovereign manufactured and vertically integrated businesses, this is the fifth pallet manufacturing acquisition in less than two years. In May Hyne acquired Pallet & Bin Pty Ltd located in Shepparton while in 2024 it acquired Rodpak Pallets & Packaging (VIC), Express Pallets & Crates (QLD) and Pinetec Pty (WA). Like the previous four businesses, Newcastle Pallets is located in one of Australia’s leading population centres and manufacturing powerhouses of the country. Specifically, Newcastle represents the strong growth region of the NSW Hunter Valley and greater Newcastle area. It also supplies a nationally operating customer base, some of whom are also customers of our other pallet manufacturing plants, enabling Australia’s significant manufacturing, mining, industrial and agricultural sectors to efficiently freight their goods. Hyne Group CEO, Jim Bindon said Newcastle Pallets has been a valued customer of our Tumbarumba Sawmill in NSW during its approximately 25 years of operations. “We are really pleased to bring Newcastle Pallets into the Hyne Pallets fold. I welcome the opportunity to have worked with the owner, our previously valued customer, Anthony Turner, to deliver a smooth succession transition for his business. We will also ensure a seamless transition for the staff, customers and suppliers of the business over the coming months,” Mr Bindon said. This is the second investment the Hyne Group has in Newcastle, with an existing, large distribution centre to service the broad customer base of Hyne Timber with key framing and laminated beam construction timbers. “This acquisition not only presents really good opportunities for our team members, customers and suppliers, but it further integrates the Hyne Group Newcastle region footprint to ensure efficiency and growth into the future.” Mr Bindon said. The acquisition of Newcastle Pallets will finalise on 1 September 2025, subject to all Completion Precedents being met.

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