16 INTEGRATED ANNUAL REPORT 2022 The Richards Bay mill complex and Durban mill are both exposed to inadequate state-delivered port services. In addition, the mills felt the effects of fires which broke out on separate occasions in October as well as coal pressing all other commodities for berth priorities. Richards Bay There was a strong market appetite for Acacia in 2021, even during the traditional out of season period. This resulted in a challenging intake of 200 000 tonnes from June to September, averaging over 40 000 tonnes per month. System improvements have been implemented to accommodate Acacia receipts at either the Richards Bay Wood Chips or BayFibre mills which gives greater operational flexibility to the complex. Overall, the Richards Bay mill complex exported over 1.1 million tonnes and loaded a record 31 vessels during the period under review, this despite the following challenges: • An altered berthing system to accommodate certain exports due to the fire damage late in the year. This placed pressure on all commodities with excessive delays to vessels including the dedicated wood chip berth. • The poor maintenance of the port conveyor systems, loading equipment and general housekeeping. • Extensive power supply delays due to load shedding and several serious municipal transformer fires. The complex carried out upgrades to laboratory equipment, installed a new replacement chipper disc at BayFibre and effected a significant amount of structural steel maintenance on the export conveyor systems and throughout the facility. This work continues into the new year, with issues such as the abnormally high cost and scarcity of steel, and the high production volumes required by customers, forcing the work plan to extend over several years. Total export sales by species – 1.1 million tonnes Acacia 58% E. smithii 5.5% Eucalyptus 33.5% Biomass 3%
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