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Port of Napier said it will be able to handle 20 per cent more logs a year because a reclamation project has increased storage space at the port.
Port of Napier commercial manager Chris Bain said the reclamation inside the breakwater added 8000 tonnes of storage capacity at any one time. That meant the port could handle an extra 100,000 tonnes of logs a year. It handled 525,000 tonnes last year.
Mr Bain said the project cost less than $2 million. The reclaimed land was adjacent to existing log storage facilities.
The port already held a resource consent for the reclamation and the project started in September 2006. It took eight months and was completed on time.
Trading conditions in the international log market have improved over the last year due to a reduction in the illegal harvesting of hardwoods through Asia.
There has also been a fall off in Russian log exports due to rail transport cost increases from Russia to China. This combined change in the market has increased demand for logs from sustainable sources, in particular New Zealand radiata.
"The upturn in international log trade is forecast to continue for some time and it was important that we moved quickly to expand our storage facilities," he said.
Mr Bain said the project was challenging and heavy equipment from outside the region had to be bought in.
The logs travel to the port by truck.
- NZPA
