After having its Environmental Impact Report (RIMA) analyzed, Chilean company Arauco was granted a Preliminary License for the construction of its new pulp mill in the city of Inocência (MS), Brazil, with planned investments of R$28 billion.
According to the State Environmental Control Council (CECA), the opinion recommending the permit was unanimously approved last week.
In addition to the new pulp and paper mill, Inocência will also be home to a thermoelectric plant, which is why a detailed Environmental Impact Study and Report (EIA/RIMA) is required, presenting an environmental diagnosis, an assessment of the consequences, among other aspects.
Chaired by Jaime Verruck, head of the Secretariat for the Environment, Development, Science, Technology and Innovation (Semadesc), the Council is made up of 20 members, half from public institutions and the rest representatives of civil society.
“We have taken every precaution, both from an environmental point of view and in terms of urban infrastructure, to support the sudden growth that Inocência will experience,” Verruck said in a statement.
Arauco expects to invest R$28 billion in the new venture and is hiring around 12,000 people during construction, generating around 1,070 direct and indirect jobs once it is up and running.
The first phase of the project should start operating in 2028 and the second in 2032. As a result, the new mill’s production capacity is expected to be 2.5 million tons of pulp per year.
Winning the Preliminary License from the CECA marks the beginning of the project’s materialization. It is still necessary to apply for an Installation License (LI) from the Mato Grosso do Sul Environment Institute (Imasul) and then an Operating License (LO).
ARAUCO IN MS
Arauco’s new pulp mill will work with a forestry base of approximately 200,000 hectares of leased land. “There will be more eucalyptus for pulp and less soy in the export scenario from 2025. The change will make Ribas do Rio Pardo the eucalyptus capital of the world,” said Verruck.
Arauco also plans to invest in a second pulp line, doubling the amount invested, as well as a further US$ 1 billion in land leasing and forest planting.
