Fibria’s first anniversary

On September 1^st, Fibria had plenty to celebrate on the occasion of its first anniversary. The company, which came into being as the world leader in the renewable forestry business, employs around 14,500 professionals, including its own employees and dedicated outsourced staff. It operates 6 industrial units, with a combined annual production capacity of 5.4 million tons of bleached eucalyptus pulp and 358,000 tons of paper. The company has a forest base covering 1.04 million hectares, distributed within the states of Bahia, Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, Mato Grosso do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul and São Paulo, which includes 393,000 hectares of native forest reserves that have been set aside for environmental conservation.

Financial adjustment

In this first year of activities, Fibria’s efficient management of its finances has been recognized by the market. The sale of the Guaíba Unit (Rio Grande do Sul State), at the end of 2009, and two subsequent bond issues enabled the company to settle in full its derivative debt and lay the foundations for a return to growth. Fibria’s shares have been listed in the Novo Mercado – the BM&FBovespa’s highest level of corporate governance – and it is the only representative of its sector to be included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index 2009-2010 (DJSI World), which features the companies listed at the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) that are considered to be benchmarks for socio-environmental practices. Fibria is also included in the Bovespa (São Paulo Stock Exchange) Corporate Sustainability Index (ISE) 2009-2010.

New records and investment

Over the last 12 months, Fibria has set a number of new records. The Três Lagoas Unit (Mato Grosso do Sul State), the world’s largest pulp mill using a single fiberline, with an annual production capacity of 1.3 million tons, came into operation and managed to attain a volume of 1 million tons in its first 337 days. The company also announced the expansion of its forest base, in order to bring forward the operational start-up of the second fiberline at Três Lagoas (from 2016 to 2014). In relation to the project for revamping Fiberline A (Revit-A), at the Aracruz Unit (Espírito Santo State), Fibria is investing approximately R$ 100 million to optimize the pulp bleaching line, involving the introduction of new equipment and more modern processes, leading to lower production costs. At the peak of this project, a total of 1,000 new jobs will be created.

Sustainability benchmark

Fibria has been chosen for inclusion in the 2010/2011 portfolio of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World), which identifies the world’s best companies in terms of sustainability. Fibria is one of the seven Brazilian companies included in the index. The company was also identified as the leader in the Paper and Forestry sector, where it was one of only three companies chosen from the twelve that were evaluated. The DJSI was created in 1999 and provides an annual assessment of the economic, environmental and social performance of 2,691 companies listed with the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange), taking into consideration factors such as corporate governance, the management of human capital, climate change, among others.

Support for the indians

On September 2^nd, Fibria signed a formal agreement with FUNAI (National Foundation for Indian Affairs) and representatives of the indian communities in Aracruz (Espírito Santo State), under which the company will allocate R$ 1.8 million to the seven Tupiniquim and Guarani villages located within the region. These resources are to be used in projects that contribute to the sustainable development of those communities, embracing professional training and the generating of income, as recommended in an ethno-environmental study conducted in the region. This investment had been provided for in the Conduct Adjustment Agreement signed by the company, the indian communities, FUNAI and the Federal Public Prosecution Service in 2007.

New forest nursery

On September 17^th, Fibria held a ceremony to mark the beginning of work on the Seedling Production Unit located in the municipality of Helvécia, in Nova Viçosa (Bahia State). The company will invest around R$ 30 million in the construction of the nursery, which will have the capacity to produce 30 million eucalyptus seedlings a year. The inauguration is planned for the end of 2011, when the nursery will begin to meet the company’s seedling production needs, as well as generating 250 direct jobs. In order to improve the employability of the local inhabitants, members of the community will be given training for the tasks required in the nursery and will have priority when it comes to hiring.

Our paper gets the CERFLOR seal

On September 9^th, Fibria’s Piracicaba Unit (São Paulo State) officially began to produce paper that bears the CERFLOR (Brazilian Program of Forest Certification) seal of approval. Earlier this year, the unit completed the process for certification of its Chain of Custody (CoC), which confirms that the manufactured products are made using pulp obtained from forest plantations that are managed in a sustainable manner.

Environmental award

The Cleaner Production Program, developed by Fibria’s Jacareí Unit (São Paulo State), has been chosen by CIESP (Industrial Association of the State of São Paulo) as the best environmental project. The award was presented during the 6^th Exhibition of Environmental Action, held by the CIESP Regional Board on August 25^th and 26^th. The program was developed in 2004, with the aim of developing awareness among Fibria’s employees that would lead to identifying alternatives for reducing, reutilizing and recycling the waste generated by the company’s industrial processes.

Technological innovation

Fibria was one of the prize winners in InformationWeek Brasil magazine’s tenth annual survey “The 100 Greatest Innovators in IT Use”. At the presentation ceremony, held on September 21^st, the company was a standout, for the second year running, in the category “Industry: Plastics, Rubber, Pulp & Paper”. This survey is considered to be the most important assessment of the use of information technology (IT) in business innovation. Its objective is to acknowledge the companies that have the most well-structured technology management processes.

Insurance certification

On September 16^th, Fibria’s Três Lagoas Unit (Mato Grosso do Sul State) obtained the Highly Protected Risk (HPR) certification. This certification, issued by insurer FM Global, indicates that the unit’s risk management meets international standards. The commitment shown by the unit’s professionals, the prevention programs implemented throughout the mill and the constant maintenance are some of the factors that helped the company to obtain this certification.

WWF visits Fibria

Two consultants from the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) visited Fibria’s forest base at Capão do Leão (Rio Grande do Sul State) at the beginning of September. During their visit, the NGO representatives learned about the Forestry Savings program that has been adopted by the company, whereby hundreds of farmers with less than 50 hectares of land participate in agroforestry schemes. They also took a look at the management of small rural properties in the region and visited a training center for rural producers, located in the municipality of Canguçu.

Did you know...

...that in 2009, Brazil jumped from 11^th to 9^th place among the world’s leading paper producers? The country’s output that year totaled 9.3 million tons. This information was published in the RISI Annual Review, which listed the 30 biggest producers and consumers worldwide.
Source: BRACELPA (Brazilian Pulp & Paper Association).