A parliamentary inquiry into the sale of the Triabunna woodchip mill on Tasmania’s east coast has recommended the wharf stay in public hands. Source: ABC News
A Liberal-dominated parliamentary committee has been investigating the 2011 sale of the former Gunns mill to multi-millionaire environmentalists Graeme Wood and Jan Cameron.
It found the former Labor government did little to ensure the reopening of the mill, despite the fact there were avenues at its disposal to do so.
The land-locked wharf was described as a vital piece of infrastructure and the committee recommended the Government investigate its possible future uses.
The inquiry also found the environmentalists had no intention of reopening a woodchip operation that was considered critical to Tasmania’s forestry industry.
The report found there was a contractual obligation in the sale of the mill that the pair’s former company, Triabunna Investments, operate the site for woodchipping, but that it had no intention of resuming woodchipping exports from the site.
Triabunna is a deep-sea port, which allows for ships on the east coast and other vessels to have safe haven and provide an opportunity going forward.
It also found the company did not breach any regulations when it dismantled the mill.
It recommended the Tasmanian Government now assist Graeme Wood with his plans to turn the site into a tourism development.
Committee chairman Guy Barnett denied the inquiry had been politicised and emphasised that the Triabunna wharf should stay in government ownership to meet potential future demand.
“In terms of the wharf, it’s a strategic infrastructure asset for this state,” he said.
“Triabunna and the port of Triabunna is a deep-sea port, which allows for ships on the east coast and other vessels to have safe haven and provide an opportunity going forward.
“What we have found is that the former government did little to ensure the reopening of the mill despite the fact that there were avenues to ensure the reopening of the mill.”
The committee found the bid for Gunns woodchip mill by the forestry company Aprin, which stated it wanted to keep the mill running as a woodchip export business, was $6 million more than the $10 million that Gunns accepted from the company Triabunna Investments, owned by the two environmentalists.
Aprin said it was going to use timber supplied by Foresty Tasmania to feed the woodchip mill.
The committee found that on the evidence presented there was considerable tension between Forestry Tasmania and Gunns, which may have influenced the decision made by Gunns to sell the mill to Triabunna Investments rather than Aprin.
Mr Barnett said Gunns was also offered compensation under the deal with the environmental entrepreneurs.
The committee was made up of three Liberal MPs, one Labor MP and one Green MP, who were investigating the circumstances surrounding the closure, sale and dismantling of the mill.
Dissenting statements from the Labor and Greens representatives were included in the report.
Labor MP Rebecca White labelled the report “political” and said she could not support the report as it stood.
She said parts of the report were untrue, and the reference to the payment of the compensation to Gunns was misleading and failed to acknowledge the legal necessity for that payment as compensation for Gunns exiting the native forest industry.
Ms White said the whole inquiry and its final report were a sham.
“The report handed by the committee was basically written by the Liberal chair, it was full of his opinion presented as fact, it was highly inflammatory in the language, and presented the Liberal narrative under the guise of a parliamentary committee,” she said.
Greens MP Cassy O’Connor said the inquiry was set up by a newly elected Liberal Government to attempt to invent a web of conspiracy and smear key players in the closure and sale of the mill.
Ms O’Connor said despite the best endeavours of Liberal MPs on the committee, the inquiry had failed to establish any evidence of a conspiracy in relation to Gunns decision to accept the cash offer of $10 million for the mill from Mr Wood and Ms Cameron.
The Tourism Industry Council said it was fortunate Mr Wood was still planning to invest $50 million to develop a tourism and events hub.
Spokesman Luke Martin also labelled the inquiry politically-driven.
“[It’s] a government that’s trying to essentially settle some scores around the demise of the timber mill site,” he said.
The first development application for the site is expected sometime this year.
