Opal has confirmed it’s A$140m high tech corrugated packaging facility is on track to be completed and operational by October 2023.
The site will receive more than 260 containers of state-of-the-art equipment with the installation phase commencing from April.
Sustainability is a core component of the site’s design, which when completed, will feature water harvesting capability and solar power to leverage the facility’s 41,000 sqm of roof area. The total footprint of the facility will be approximately 55,000 sqm.
The facility will use kraft and recycled packaging paper from Opal’s Maryvale Mill in the Latrobe Valley and Botany Mill in Sydney. It will produce high quality corrugated packaging to supply a wide range of fresh produce, food processing, FMCG and manufacturing industries across Australia.
Wodonga was specifically selected as the site of the new facility due to its central location to eastern Australia and growing customer demand for recyclable packaging.
Opal’s strategic investment in Wodonga was driven by market demand for superior, Australian-made recyclable packaging. Chris Daly, Executive General Manager, Opal Packaging, said, “Opal’s Wodonga corrugated facility will enable us to increase our production, create new regional jobs and grow our customer base. “Once running at capacity, the facility will be able to produce up to 720,000 square metres of packaging board per day, which is equivalent to almost 400 tonnes of finished corrugated boxes.”
Opal is committed to supporting regional jobs and once it is operating, the facility is expected to support more than 400 Victorian jobs including direct and flow-on.
