Cashing in their chips
GEELONG-BASED wood fibre processor and exporter Midway is looking for growers across the region to help meet its long-term export demand.
Its Geelong operations delivered more than $173 million in revenue in the last financial year to underpin the company’s combined $24.7 million profit across its four business units.
Midway processes more than 1.2 million tonnes of woodchips a year from its North Geelong base, which operates six days a week, 24 hours a day.
The company has started working with industry stakeholders, institutional investors and farmers to increase plantations in the Geelong catchment to meet projected demand coming out of its major market in China.
In the coming year it hopes to have about 1800ha of new plantations under way and by 2035, it aims to have secured 60,000ha of resource across its Geelong and Green Triangle catchments, with half of that supply to be in new plantations, mainly in partnerships with existing landholders.
CEO Tony Price said increase in demand from China, which had surpassed Japan as its major trading destination, had created genuine competition in the market.
“With demand level or outstripping supply, we expect to see upward price movements,” Mr Price said.
He said the company was keen to talk to landowners and farmers about a range of supply options and it was also in discussions with potential investors about new plantations.
Listing on the ASX in 2016, Midway Limited is on a significant growth path, acquiring Plantation Management Partners last October and in January it secured a 25 per cent stake in ADDCO Fibre Group which provides forestry supply chain and logistics services.
PMP manages more than 70,000ha of plantation estate in northern Australia, Cambodia and Laos, with the combined group managing in excess of 90,000ha. Continued Page 17