Sonae reveals timetable for rebuilding damaged plant

However, the company said it would continue to purchase some volumes of waste wood in the interim to safeguard its position in the supply chain and work with wood suppliers to minimise the impact on their operations.

The Knowsley plant ordinarily recycles 1,200 tonnes of waste wood a day and Sonae describes it at the largest recycler of waste wood in the UK.

The fire at the facility broke out on June 9th and lasted for eight days. It involved six bunkers of woodchip and at its height, 12 fire appliances were on the scene (see letsrecycle.com story).

Since the incident, the company has not been taking in waste wood and many wood recyclers in the region have had to find alternative outlets for their recycled woodchip- leading some toraise their gate fees.

While the section of the factory which finishes the wood was unaffected and remains open, a controlled demolition process is taking place on the part of the site which produces the particleboard. This involves removing debris and assessing the feasibility of using some of the remaining plant equipment. The process is expected to take around six weeks.

Nigel Graham, managing director of Sonae Industria (UK) Ltd, said: Sonae Industria (UK) Ltd has now completed the re-engineering and re-design of the wood yard area damaged by the fire on the 9th of June. Tenders have been requested from a number of specialist contractors for the work that will be carried out over the next nine months, which includes a phased start up of the new operation.

Production is expected to resume in two stages. The first will enable 80% of full capacity from October 2011 and the second and final stage will return the operation to full production in the first quarter of 2012, subject to planning approval.

Waste wood

Commenting on what this would mean for wood recyclers, a spokeswoman for Sonae said: The purchase of recycled materials will resume following the start-ups as indicated, however the company will be continuing to purchase volumes of material to safeguard their position in the supply chain.

She added that it was the intention of Sonae to work with wood suppliers to minimise the impact on their operations, revealing that Currently alternative routes are being identified and resolved.

Pressure

The announcement from Sonae comes at a time when the company is under growing pressure to improve its management of the Knowsley site. Last week (July 13), councillors at Knowsley council passed a motion calling for a more robust and alternative approach to be adopted by all public sector agencies in working with Sonae to prevent a similar incident happening in future.

The motion states: It is a matter of record that there have been at least seven fires at the plant in the last five years as well as numerous accidents and near misses. These incidents and the general day to day monitoring and regulation of the plant are having a detrimental impact on the quality of life of Knowsley residents as well as placing a significant and disproportionate burden on public sector agencies at a time when resources are scarce. This situation is unsustainable.

Last month, Labour MP for Knowsley George Howarth also tabled an Early Day Motion in parliament calling for the Sonae plant to be closed down for good (see letsrecycle.com story) .

An HSE spokesman told letsrecycle.com that an investigation into the fire and an incident in December 2010 at the plant in which two men died (see letsrecycle.com story) were ongoing.

Commenting on Sonaes public image, Mr Graham said that the company was committed to the UK market and would address any reliability concerns.

He said: The management and staff at Knowsley are fully dedicated to enhancing the relationship with all stakeholders and there is confidence that this new investment will improve operation performance and address reliability issues we have experienced in the past. We would like to thank our staff and customers for their continued support.