Irish mill lobbies minister on Coillte harvesting rights fears

Joint managing directors of Glennon Brothers Pat and Mike Glennon warned Mr Sherlock of the "potentially devastating consequences" of the possible sale of state forester Coillte's harvesting rights.

Mr Sherlock was visiting Glennon Brothers' Fermoy plant to see progress on the company's €12m capital investment in value-added processing.

Mr Sherlock said afterwards that he shared and took on board the concerns of Glennon Brothers and other forestry representatives.

"I have welcomed [natural resources] minister Pat Rabbitte's statement that privatisation of Coillte is unlikely and take this as a positive sign," he said.

"The single biggest issue facing the sector today is the proposed sale of Coillte's harvesting rights," said Pat Glennon."Glennon Brothers is opposed to any sale which could lead to the closure of all 10 of Ireland's sawmills, causing the loss of 2,500 jobs, with disastrous consequences for the Irish economy."

Mike Glennon said the sale of Coillte's harvesting rights would affect the company's log supply continuity, which was "critical" for its efforts to grow timber exports in new and existing markets.

Glennon Brothers exports two-thirds of its Irish output, with its contribution to the economy growing from €23m to €35m in the last two years, solely due to exports.