Latest news with #Marriner
Sky News AU
02-07-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Boyer Paper Mill owner David Marriner warns 340 positions under threat as limited renewable energy eats into budget
The owner of Australia's last paper mill has issued a desperate plea for his 340 employees as his business struggles with energy problems. David Marriner, the CEO of Boyer Paper Mill in Tasmania, lamented the setbacks he has faced as he tries to electrify his business. Boyer Paper Mill currently spends about $12m per year on coal which the company imports from Newcastle after it lost its Tasmanian source three years ago, according to Mr Marriner. It sought to install electric boilers to greatly reduce emissions but the state-owned power company Hydro Tasmania said it did not have enough power to supply the mill. 'To my amazement, I sit in the commercial strip on Collins St to be told there's simply not the power,' Mr Marriner said. Boyer was unable to secure the power despite the federal government investing $9m into the paper mill in part to facilitate its decarbonisation. Mr Marriner stressed the paper mill needed the same power arrangements as fellow industrial users that are offered competitive prices. 'What we're keen to have (is) nothing more or nothing less than the prices that are being provided to the other two or three equivalent major suppliers,' he said. 'We just want the same terms and conditions. We don't want to be paying more than what our competitors are. I'm absolutely shattered and disappointed.' He said if the mill was unable to secure hydro power from Tasmania the business would be 'unsustainable' as the company forks out $12m per year for coal from NSW. 'The political system forced the closure and access to coal in Tasmania to us,' Mr Marriner said. "Why should 340 employees take the burden of stupid decisions? Why should they lose jobs?" Prime Minister Anthony Albanese earlier this year pledged $24m to the mill as part of Labor's lavish pre-election cash splashes. Of that cash injection, about $9m was to "stabilise its operations and prepare major investments to decarbonise and diversify its production". 'Boyer Paper Mill is an iconic part of Tasmania's manufacturing story,' the Prime Minister said in April. 'It was Australia's first ever newsprint mill built in the 1940s, and thousands of Tasmanians have worked here over that time. 'We want to see the mill continue well into the future, and that is why we are committing up to $24m to help Boyer secure local jobs and supply chains and move forward with confidence towards a low-emissions future.' The power price struggles for Boyer Paper Mill comes as a litany of manufacturers around the country struggle to remain viable. Rio Tinto-owned aluminium smelter Tomago located north of Newcastle, is reportedly seeking billions of dollars in public funds to prevent collapse. Meanwhile, a zinc and lead producer Myrstar Australia is also seeking government handouts as it loses "tens of millions a month".
Perth Now
02-07-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
340 jobs at risk as Aussie paper mill teeters
Australia's last remaining industrial paper mill is teetering under shock power shortages, with the owner warning that 340 jobs could disappear without any stabilisation in prices. Boyer Paper Mill chief executive David Marriner, speaking with the ABC this week, said he had been forced to shell out an additional $12m to ship in coal from NSW to keep the mill's operations running after Hydro Tasmania, a renewable energy provider, told him it would be unable to supply the mill with clean power. 'To my amazement, I sit in the commercial strip on Collins St to be told there's simply not the power,' he said. Mr Marriner is trying to electrify the mill, located about 35km north of Hobart, to make it carbon neutral but said he needed 'the same terms and conditions' on power as other industrial users. '(We want) Nothing more or nothing less than the prices that are being provided to the other two or three equivalent major suppliers,' he said. 'We just want the same terms and conditions. We don't want to be paying more than what our competitors are. I'm shattered and disappointed.' Without competitive rates, the mill would be 'unsustainable', he said, and 340 workers could lose their jobs. 'Ask yourself, why should 340 employees take the burden of stupid decisions? Why should they lose jobs?' Mr Marriner said. The Boyer Mill is in Tasmania, north of Hobart. Jason Edwards / NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese toured the mill in April, pledging $24m to help it transition away from coal power. Jason Edwards / NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia The mill formed a centrepiece of Anthony Albanese's re-election pitch during the 2025 campaign, pledging $24m in funding to help it switch from coal-fired boilers to electric boilers. 'Boyer Paper Mill is an iconic part of Tasmania's manufacturing story,' the Prime Minister said in April. 'It was Australia's first ever newsprint mill built in the 1940s, and thousands of Tasmanians have worked here over that time. 'We want to see the mill continue well into the future, and that is why we are committing up to $24m to help Boyer secure local jobs and supply chains and move forward with confidence towards a low-emissions future.' Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the decarbonisation of industry made 'good economic sense'. 'Decarbonising our industries and manufacturing isn't just good for bringing emissions down, it makes good economic sense, as companies switch to running on not just the cleanest but the cheapest form of energy (which is) reliable renewables,' he said. The power shock hitting Boyer follows other energy warning signs at major industrial hubs in Australia. Rio Tinto's Tomago aluminium smelter in NSW is reportedly close to shutting down on high energy costs. Tomago is powered by AGL Energy's Bayswater coal-fired power station but is pivoting to renewable energy. Negotiations over a new energy contract have troubled the smelter's operations for months. The AGL contract is due to expire in 2028. A shutdown at Tomago could impact 6000 jobs across the Hunter Valley region. Rio holds a 51.6 per cent interest in the smelter, which produces about 590,000 tonnes of aluminium each year or about 37 per cent of Australia's total production. Reports suggest the company has been in emergency talks with state and federal governments for a bailout in the past few weeks.
1News
25-06-2025
- Business
- 1News
'Irresponsible': Tauranga fee hikes increase the cost of dying
Tauranga funeral directors are "appalled" and "extremely disappointed" with council increases to cremation and burial fees, saying they will drive up costs for customers. Tauranga City Council is increasing most of its burial and cremation fees as of July 1. The fees are a new $200 fee for same-day cremations, a $1030 non-resident burial fee for anyone from outside of Tauranga to be buried in a Tauranga cemetery, a new $293 fee for families who want to fill part of a grave themselves, and increasing the public holiday surcharge to $1000. The council would also remove the 10% discount for funeral homes that paid their bills on time. Hope Family Funerals general manager Oliver Marriner said the sector was appalled the new and increased charges were being introduced without any clear data presented to justify them. ADVERTISEMENT Hope Family Funerals, Legacy Funerals and four other funeral directors made a joint submission to the council's 2025/26 Annual Plan expressing their concerns about the fee increases. When that failed to move the council, they wrote asking it to pause the increases until it had engaged with Tauranga funeral homes and had detailed information about the costs involved, Marriner said. The council acknowledged their email, but had not made any 'meaningful contact', he said. 'Implementing new charges without the data to support them is simply irresponsible.' Hope Family Funerals general manager Oliver Marriner. (Source: Supplied) Funerals were already expensive, and increased costs had to be passed on to families, he said. 'At a time when they're already struggling financially, to then be charged all these extra things – it can really add up.' ADVERTISEMENT It could also add to a family's grief if they were unable to honour a loved one's wishes because of the financial burden, Marriner said. 'We work hard to try and keep prices as a funeral home as affordable as we can. It just feels like the cemetery's working against us on that. 'Instead of being a council service, it feels like it's almost a greedy business.' The removal of the discount for funeral homes could mean they needed to increase their fees or have the council invoice families directly, he said. 'It's an additional complicating factor for families who are already under a lot of pressure.' The funeral homes carried the cost and debt of burials or cremations until families paid, and often they were waiting for the money coming from an estate, Marriner said. He wanted clarification from the council to justify the fees so they could explain this to their clients and the community, he said. ADVERTISEMENT The council didn't see the grief of families facing the 'large costs', Marriner said. 'It would be nice to have that acknowledgement from them [council] that they want to work with funeral homes and by doing so, they're really working with the community.' Hope Family Funerals funeral director Eva Wolf said the non-resident burial fee did not make sense. Someone living in Pyes Pā might be just outside the Tauranga border and would need to pay even though they lived a few hundred metres away from the Pyes Pā Memorial Park cemetery, she said. Legacy Funerals general manager Kiri Randall said they understood fees needed to go up to reflect inflation and investments in assets. Tauranga Legacy Funerals general manager Kiri Randall. (Source: Supplied) 'We are extremely disappointed that the council has chosen to move ahead with these specific, poorly considered increases without engaging with the funeral sector.' ADVERTISEMENT 'Significant loss in revenue' Coffin at a funeral. (Source: Tauranga City Council spaces and places manager Alison Law said the council decided to remove the discount for funeral directors because of a 'significant loss in revenue'. The council lost nearly $15,000 from providing the discount in March alone, she said. 'We understand that this change may create some cash flow challenges for funeral directors, and we're committed to working with them individually to find solutions that meet their needs.' The pricing adjustments reflected growing costs of maintaining cemetery facilities, infrastructure, and essential services, Law said. She said the changes were necessary to ensure the council could continue to deliver high standards of care. The non-resident burial fee ensured Pyes Pā Cemetery served Tauranga residents as required by law, Law said. Law said the council could choose to waive the fee in some cases such as if the person lived near the cemetery. ADVERTISEMENT But the council was seeing more requests from places like Ōmokoroa, which were further away, she said. 'We remain committed to supporting families and funeral directors during these times and are open to discussing individual circumstances. 'Where possible, we aim to find compassionate, case-by-case solutions to help families honour their loved ones in a meaningful and respectful way.' The council's 2025/26 Annual Plan, including the fees and charges, would be adopted at a meeting tomorrow. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
