THE final chapter for the remaining assets of former timber company Gunns could be written in weeks, with contracts for the proposed pulp mill land expected to be finalised next month.
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Receivers for Gunns, Kordamentha, say they have received multiple expressions of interests for the land at the Bell Bay site and permits for the mill.
But spokesman Mike Smith said the receivers could not reveal how many EOIs had been received, where they came from, or whether they were for both assets.
‘‘It’s a bit of a blind auction and a bit of a poker game,’’ Mr Smith said.
‘‘All bidders have been asked to do their full due diligence and lodge binding offers by the end of this month.
‘‘If there’s a bid for the land only that’s a better bid than any of the others, we’ve got to do our duty to our creditors,’’ he said.
Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Michael Bailey said while it was unlikely the land would be used for a pulp mill, it would be an exciting investment for the North.
‘‘It’s next to a deep water port, it’s next to a power station with access to fresh water and an engaged local work force,’’ Mr Bailey said.
‘‘It’s an absolute ripper of a site.
‘‘I expect there will be a lot of businesses nationally and internationally looking at this site and wondering what they could do with it,’’ he said.
Mr Bailey said the proposed pulp mill was too far gone.
‘‘I do expect to see some sort of industrial development there and logically it would be tied to the sort of things happening in the region at the moment, such as dairy and forestry,’’ he said.
Last year, KordaMentha announced a deal to sell Gunns’ hardwood plantation estate to Sydney-based forestry investment company New Forests for about $330 million.
The company was not interested in the pulp mill site and permits, but KordaMentha had not given up hope of selling the asset to a separate buyer.