UPM (exBotnia) to invest $ 3 billion in Uruguay in another pulp mill

MONTEVIDEO.- The Finnish company
UPM (
exBotnia) build your second
pulp mill in this country and a new port terminal, with a
investment total of more than US $ 3,000 million. The company made this decision by honoring the commitments made by the Uruguayan government to add public works, undertaken a few days ago, for the new central railway and related accesses, with an investment of nearly $ 1,000 million. U.S. dollars. In addition, the port of Montevideo will build a new access system with a viaduct around the Uruguayan capital.

The new pulp mill, which is expected to start operations in the second half of 2022, will be the third in Uruguay: the first was Botnia's
Fray Bentos, in front of Gualeguaychú, which led to an international conflict with Argentina, the second is that of Montes del Plata (a Swedish-Finnish Chilean company) located in Conchillas (Colonia).

"UPM's investment strengthens the international image of
Uruguay in terms of legal certainty, institutional stability, reliability, accountability and reliability in the face of foreign investment, "said the Government of
Tabaré Vázquez, after receipt of the official communication of the company.

In the middle of the election campaign, the government was criticized by all the other parties for managing these negotiations and for the conditions granted to the foreign company. Contrary to what happened with the two other factories, when the resistance of the Ecologists of Entre Ríos generated a closed defense of the manufacture of the cellulose by the Uruguayans, this new project UPM-2 registered several rejections, well that they are not significant.

The presidential candidate, Guido Manini Ríos, is among those who raise the flag against UPM, claiming that he would pollute the Negro River, which crosses the country horizontally, and that tax exemptions and other benefits are granted to producers. local. There is also an environmental movement that has collected signatures against the plant, but with little impact.

"Uruguay has demonstrated a consistent long-term vision in creating the necessary conditions to attract foreign investment and lay the foundation for industrial development," said UPM President, Jussi Pesonen, in a statement. announcing the work.

Forest development began with a special law of incentive for the sector, pbaded in 1987 during the first government of Julio María Sanguinetti (Colorado Party), completed under the next government of Luis Lacalle (White Party), which voted the Ports Act (1992).

Red President Jorge Batlle voted the investment protection treaty with Finland (2004) and approved the first Botnia plant (2005).

The socialist Vázquez authorized the start of the Botnia (2007) pasta production and approved the plan of the second plant.

The front-runner José Mujica has authorized the increase of the production of UPM (2013) and inaugurated that of Montes del Plata (2014).

After the official announcement, the main opposition parties declared that, even though they did not agree with certain aspects of the contract, they supported the agreement and valued the creation of jobs.

Uruguay suffers from the decline in private investment since 2014 and the decline in employment since 2015.

Now, the Vázquez government hopes that the start of the railway works will boost the market and improve its popular image, which has fallen to 25%.