tasmanian times are a changin

It is worthwhile to note that apart fron avatars on this web site that there are other comments from where this epicentre is of a disaterous proportions,this must the death watch of a government in Tasmania,and that is only the first day.
Interesting comment on a rust bucket that Gunns has on hire,never knew that plus if the wood chips are dirty then the land of the rising sun puts a financial penalty in too.
It just gets better-------


Comments (28)

1.I made more than Gunns did last year and I didnt have to rape and pillage politics or forests to do it. No wonder Gay sold down his shareholdingare they trading without the ability to pay their liabilities..?

Posted by Name withheld on 22/02/10 at 10:02 AM
2.This news is absolutely brilliant!!!

Posted by Concerned Resident on 22/02/10 at 10:29 AM
3.Well......surprise, surprise! The wonder for most of is is that they have managed [minor edit -ed] to stave of the inevitable for so long.

$2.5 billion pulp mill? I dont think so!

Posted by Valleywatcher on 22/02/10 at 10:37 AM
4.lets pass the hat around for poor ol john.

Posted by crud on 22/02/10 at 11:02 AM
5.Its never smart to try to compete in a global high volume/low value commodities market from a remote location with uncompetitive wage and regulatory structures.

The only reason this company has posted any profits in the past is because taxpayers have subsidised their wood, their roads and bridges, their fuel, their water, their land ownership and their legal responsibilities to everyone else.

There are many more productive uses of Tasmanias land and water resources than as pulp wood plantations.

It really seems as if, given a find of valuable diamonds, this companys management would choose to convert them to dust and sell them as industrial abrasives.

What next? A foreign takeover? A collapse? New arguments for more subsidies?

This company could easily revive its fortunes but to do so it would need to bring its thinking into the 21st century and start offering real solutions to our society.

Posted by Mike Bolan on 22/02/10 at 11:12 AM
6.Earlier this year Gunns acquired a ship name Orana. It is assumed they purchased it. The other possibility is a dry hire. It is estimated to be 60,000 tonnes.

In late January 20,000 tonnes of wood chips were loaded at Longreach and more chips, tonnage unknown, were loaded at Portland in Victoria, destination unknown. The purpose is also unknown but some were whispering fuel pellets. Because the previous cargo of Orana was iron ore and the holds had not been cleaned prior to loading, the woodchips arrived in a contaminated condition for which Gunns were penalised.

Currently the holds are being cleaned in Tasmania. It is something of a logistical nightmare and reports are filtering out that the ship is a rust bucket.

The ship will soon be loaded with woodchips, destination South Korea. In South Korea the ship will be sand blasted and painted.

Make of this what you will. Is Orana yet another example of a ship of convenience so eloquently described in the stunning book The Outlaw Sea by William Langewiesche?

Posted by Bob McMahon on 22/02/10 at 11:12 AM
7.Whilst there is still some form of life in this reviled company, now is the time to lodge a class action at them for their devastations wrought upon this land of Tasmania?
Do note that Treasurer Michael Aird has recently come up with some form of taxpayer rescue fund for a number of yet un-named businesses in Tasmania?

Posted by William Boeder on 22/02/10 at 11:13 AM
8.Couldnt have happened to a nicer company, I say!
Well done Gunns on such brilliant financial management!

Posted by Caroline on 22/02/10 at 11:16 AM
9.The Gunnerment of Tasmania is faultering.

On 20 March people can refresh democratic Government in this State.

Time for the dross that gave us debacle to go!

Posted by David Obendorf on 22/02/10 at 11:28 AM
10.Re 7 Wouldnt giving Gunns financial assistance while the govt is in caretaker mode be illegal? I know that things can still be done but they need the approval of all parties, not just the Liberals, they need the Greens to agree as well and we know the Greens would not do so. In the past the Greens have been over-ruled and treated as minor,insignificant and ignored but it is not possible in this case, is it???

Posted by Concerned Resident on 22/02/10 at 11:58 AM
11.How much did Gunns receive in Taxpayer subsidies last year? Do the people of Tasmania have a right to know?....or is it yet another secret

...and why is the share price still so high?

Posted by emily on 22/02/10 at 12:18 PM
12.Lets guess where Tasmanias forestry contractors will end up in Gunns proposed complete restructure!

Buried under a pile of heavily discounted, but still unsellable, native forest woodchips is my guess.

Ben Quin

Posted by Ben Quin on 22/02/10 at 12:31 PM
13.The question #1 asks needs to be asked long & loudly until it is answered. Is Gunns trading while insolvent?

Posted by Christopher Purcell on 22/02/10 at 12:33 PM
14.Re # 2, I agree,Bloody brilliant news.
The old saying, what goes around comes around, bad karma, its just pay back for all the contempt the company has handed out to the innocent people in rural Tasmania for many years.
I will keep my 40 year old bottle of Grange on hold untill GUNNS GO UNDER, if we can only get rid of the Lab/Lib coalition Gunnerment as well that WILL be worth celebrating.

Posted by Jack Nimble on 22/02/10 at 01:33 PM
15.Earnings arent even covering debt.

Wouldnt be surprised if the banks want to move. They could be finished.

Posted by jed on 22/02/10 at 01:53 PM
16.If only we had a pulp mill I would be able to dry my tears on Tasmanias foreststill then Ill just borrow Bazzas piece of slate...

Oh, I just heard a news flash, that the winter Olympics want to use the ASX chart for Gunns as a model for their black death, tighten your nappy downhill ski run...

Even Id like to see that..

Posted by Dave Groves on 22/02/10 at 02:19 PM
17.This is serious news. How will the labour and liberal parties fund their election campaign now that it seems they are no longer able to launder their subsidies through a virtually insolvent company?

One day is a long time in politics!

Posted by Gerry Mander on 22/02/10 at 02:34 PM
18.If Dr Bleaneys report on the ABC tonight stands up to a full investigation then the MIS schemes are in real trouble, that means the pulp mill will have no plantations and Gunns will have no future.

Posted by max on 22/02/10 at 02:37 PM
19.I see in comments so far only tears of joy.

Last price at 16:15 is down to 69 cents.
Which makes #s 1 and 13 a very pertinent question.

If you and I were in this situation with ginormous borrowings and the current share price - wed have been served a default notice by now. In my opinion, Gunns have been in this situation for quite some time. Propped up as mentioned by we tax payers at both state and federal level.
Bloody outrageous!

Posted by Paul de Burgh-Day on 22/02/10 at 02:45 PM
20.I wonder at what point did world best turned into controversial at the Examiner? (Gunns) will not be happy to read that blunder!

But no amount of spin about re-structuring and the bloody mill will hide the fact that if you take away government subsidies, there is no business left. Absolutely none.

The writing has been on the wall for years now, the mill is and will be the final nail regardless of wether they manage to start building it or not. (Gunns) has bet the house and its time someone called the removalists.

I cant help but wonder how much money Gay has managed to rescue by selling around 3 million of his shares only weeks ago? I know it is perfectly legal, but ...

Posted by Tom on 22/02/10 at 02:45 PM
21.Hope Mr Gay sticks around long enough to see Gunns demise ! Wonder if he will be selling any more of his shares soon ? 69c cents ! ASX - Better than any computer game !

Posted by Just Me on 22/02/10 at 02:58 PM
22.If they are unable to sell their woodchips, what makes them think that they will do any better at selling pulp?

Certainly the market doesnt seem to think so, and by 4.00 oclock today, most investors thought the same and 20.4 million shares were traded at 69 cents each.

Would you take the risk in investing in this company?

Certainly the chairman didnt, and sold off a large share holding BEFORE the news became public!

Posted by Gerry Mander on 22/02/10 at 03:15 PM
23.Shouldnt that be a $150,000 profit once you take away the $250,000 that Gunns owe the Tasmanian taxpayers for the culvert?

Posted by Christopher Purcell on 22/02/10 at 03:41 PM
24.I still wonder how long it is legal for Gunns and KPMG to keep the $180 million already spent on the mill from being slated as a loss?

Is there some kind of statute of limitation on this, at which time the PR blather about project ready status can no longer be maintained?

I also wonder when the big instituional investors will step in and wipe out the current board.
As John Gay is still running everything and has a Captain Ahab fixation with his mill perhaps blood on the corporate floor is the only way an authentic restrucrure will be carried out.

Posted by ron on 22/02/10 at 03:41 PM
25.I notice in tonights statements from Gunns, that part of the restructuring the company is to hive off the wood section and make that a separate entity. Basically that IS the company and the one that receives all the taxpayers money in the form of subsidies. However, this is obviously a ploy to make the Mill appear as a totally separate company and not have any association with all those nasty little environmental issues associated with the destruction and conversion of old growth forests to plantations when they go shopping for money.

Look, the new Clean Green image with an independent certified plantation wood supplier!!!

The new company is to be called Snugg, as it is a very cost arrangement between governments, banks and eco-friendly pulpmill builders! They have even announced the appointment of a new financial advisor- by the name of Aird, possibly?

Posted by Gerry Mander on 22/02/10 at 08:00 PM
26.Best bad news Ive heard all year, now what Tassie needs is the news that the pulp mill is truly dead. Then reform the forestry industry as out lined in the paper called Levelling the playing field.

http://tasmaniantimes.com/index.php?/article/levelling-the-playing-field-is-not-a-moral-judgment-but-a-statement-of-nece/

Vote in an accountable and socially responsible state government and Tassie will prosper!!

Posted by Flash on 22/02/10 at 08:06 PM
27.Good one Bob !

Check out the Orana details at: http://exchange.dnv.com/exchange/main.aspx?extool=vessel&subview=summary&vesselid=27059

Seems like it is a dry hire ....
managed from Level 6, Bayview Tower 1753-1765 Botany road
2049 Banksmeadow
Australia

cheers

CR.

Posted by strange on 22/02/10 at 08:45 PM
28.#23.Shouldnt that be a $150,000 profit once you take away the $250,000 that Gunns owe the Tasmanian taxpayers for the culvert?

No. That should read $19,850,000.00 LOSS. You forget, they owe Forestry (us, basically) twenty million dollars which they have defaulted on for last years supply of wood.

I just wonder how they are going to pay for their pipeline as well, or maybe this becomes critical infrastructue in a PORS and gets paid for by us. Normal procedure, but only to be announced AFTER the election and when the line-in-the-sand has truly been washed away!

Posted by Gerry Mander on 22/02/10 at 08:49 PM