PAPER manufacturer Norske Skog will discuss financial compensation with rail services provider Pacific National, as it bears the brunt of the North-South rail-line closure. Pacific National said urgent repairs to the line following a derailment last Friday would take about a month. Norske Skog supply and logistics manager Arnold Willems yesterday said the company was told about the severity of the line closure on Monday and had made immediate plans to move its paper to the northern Bell Bay and Burnie ports by road. "We haven't had a lot of trouble getting trucks because with the economic situation the way it is, there are more trucks available compared to usual," Mr Willems said. The Boyer business usually transports its paper on one freight train every day, six days a week. To meet demand, it must send out up to 30 truck loads a day. It is estimated that an extra 40-60 truck movements a day will be recorded on the Midland Highway in total, when freight from other companies is included. Mr Willems said it was more cost effective to cart Norske Skog product by train, although he could not give an exact figure of the difference. But he said the company would seek compensation from Pacific National for the upheaval. "That's something we would need to talk to Pacific National about at the end of the day," Mr Willems said. Mr Willems said the company wanted the rail line to be reopened as soon as possible and had been given assurances by the State Government that rail services would be maintained in Tasmania in the long-term. "The issue we have is with trucks on local roads, because we have to use Boyer Rd and the road to New Norfolk and back to Granton," he said. However, Tasmanian Transport Association executive director Robin Phillips said he personally remained doubtful that rail could work in the long term - but his board would vote on its official position next month. "It's not an economical option, it's out of date and there is limited freight so maybe we need to invest more into our roads than rail," Mr Phillips said.