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BSW Timber has secured a 10-year log supply deal with Natural Resources Wales (NRW), which will see further expansion and more jobs at the supplier’s Newbridge-on-Wye sawmill.
The Newbridge sawmill will receive an additional 600,000m3 of larch log supply over the ten year period, whilst resecuring over 700,000m3 of existing supply over the same time period. All logs will be sourced from local Welsh woodlands.
The company said it is currently developing detailed plans to increase overall capacity, flexibility and employment at the site, to be announced later in 2014.
BSW Timber’s chief executive Tony Hackney said: “This long-term supply deal is a significant vote of confidence in BSW Timber and the Welsh timber industry.
“It allows us to plan for the future with a strong focus on market needs and requirements, enabling us in turn to invest with confidence in the development of our mill at Newbridge-on-Wye. Increased capacity will mean more shifts and more jobs for the area, and the ten-year supply guarantee will allow us to continue invest in developing the site, reinforcing our pledge to maximise our supply and production of home-grown timber, also providing exciting new opportunities for the market.”
The planned investment in the Newbridge site builds on a sustained programme of investment in the sawmill over the last eight years. During that period, BSW has invested £6 million in the mill and now employs 140 staff, making it the largest single site sawmill in Wales.
This investment included a £2 million installation of the UK’s largest biomass hot water boiler plant to benefit from the Government’s Renewable Heat Incentive scheme.
Trefor Owen, director for national services for Natural Resources Wales, added the deal is “good news for the timber industry in Wales”.
“BSW will make a major contribution to dealing with the harvesting and marketing of larch in Wales, which we have to fell. We are also in the process of agreeing further contracts within Wales to ensure we maintain a reliable supply of timber to the industry,” said Owen.
