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"VeraceI is the image of President Lula," says Jaques Wagner - 01.19.04
Minister participated in the inauguration of the Veracel Training Center
Labor and Employment Minister Jaques Wagner inaugurated the Veracel Professional Training Center last 16 January, located in Eunápolis. According to the minister, "Veracel is the image of President Lula," referring to the coherence between the contribution of the company in generating jobs in the region and the policy of the federal government, which has been encouraging the creation of new work opportunities in the country. The Veracel mill is the largest private investment scheduled during the term of office of the Lula Administration, involving some US$ 1.25 billion.
Accompanied by the Secretary of Social Action of the state of Bahia, Eduardo Santos, the President of Veracel, Vitor Costa, the Vice President of Stora Enso Latin América, Otávio Pontes, and the President of the Federation of Industries of the State of Bahia (FIEB), Jorge Lins Freire, the minister emphasized the importance of the project for the economy of the extreme south of Bahia and for the country. "Here is the synthesis of what President Lula believes. Nobody will create the Brazil that we want alone. This project has the participation of the federal government, through the BNDES, the government of the state and the city halls in the region. The partnerships alone will guarantee a return in terms of economic growth and a reduction in the unemployment level," Wagner said. The minister also told the more than 1,000 students of the training courses who were present at the event that 2004 will be "an easier year, with growth of the GDP estimated at between 3.5% and 4%."
Occupying 4,000 m², the Veracel Professional Training Center was created to teach approximately 2,000 of the 5,900 persons from the region who will be participating in professional training courses being established by the company in partnership with the state government, FIEB and the local city governments leading to the formation of trained manpower in the construction and operating phases of its future pulp mill, located in municipalities of Eunápolis and Belmonte. At the training center, there are 16 school rooms, 30 welding workstations and workbenches for mechanical assembly, instrumentation and electro-mechanical work, used to teach new professionals skills for activities required during the construction, mill assembly and industrial and forestry operations of the Veracel project.
"We are investing R$ 12 million just in the training programs themselves. This is clear evidence of how much the company is aware of its social responsibility to the communities in which it is inserted," stated Veracel's President Vitor Costa. "Veracel is treating this subject with the seriousness it deserves. Without the productivity and quality of the workforce that we are training here, the manufacturing project will not be successful," said Bahia Social Action Secretary Eduardo Santos. Jorge Lins Freire, of FIEB, added "Veracel is a Bahian company " and that "the region will be highly benefited through its training program."
The manpower trained by Veracel is given priority when the company or outsourced suppliers working on building the mill hire new employees. Currently, some 3,000 persons are working directly for the construction project. At the peak of construction activity, approximately 12,000 persons will work directly and indirectly to ensure the mill starts up its operations in the middle of 2005. In the operating phase, there will be 10,000 direct and indirect job opportunities available.
All of the mill's pulp production will be shipped the international market, generating annual foreign exchange earnings of some US$ 500 million for Brazil. This will be the largest single line pulp mill in the world, with installed capacity for production of 900,000 tons a year of bleached eucalyptus pulp. Veracel is a joint venture of Aracruz Celulose of Brazil and Stora Enso of Sweden-Finland, respectively the largest world producers of pulp and paper.