Montevideo, Chile, 29 July 2011 -- Construction by Arauco of a panel mill in Teno commune, located in Chile’s Maule Region, is generating a number of opportunities for development. In addition to the jobs created by the mill’s construction, a technical education school to train future workers and a model to work with local suppliers to supply services that this facility will require once it begins operating.
The mill’s construction stage is providing work for 350 people, reaching 600 during periods of high demand. Once it begins operations, the mill will need about 300 direct and indirect workers.
“The construction of the Teno panel mill is generating a broad range of interesting opportunities for the area, which translate into achieving economic, labor and social sustainable development. This is the way in which we relate to and engage with our surroundings,” said Patricio Eyzaguirre, Arauco's public affairs assistant manager in the Maule Region.
This point of view is shared by Curicó’s governor, María Isabel Garcés, who said that “this facility injects energy into several areas, not just for Teno, but for the development of the region’s northern area: it is an economic contribution, a contribution to employment, to workers’ training, and it also provides opportunities for other production activities in the province, while complying with current environmental regulations, something which respective organisms are paying close attention to."
It is precisely the mill’s construction which is generating a boost in production and labor in the different service providing areas, a situation that will increase once the mill begins to operate. A neighbor that has recognized this opportunity is Ramón Gómez, who launched a restaurant and accommodations service. “This project began in view of Arauco’s panel mill, which I think guarantees a good number of visitors”, he said, adding that “denying the size of this facility and the progress it will bring to the area is like being blind.”
In addition, Arauco held an informational meeting in Curicó for local businesses that wish to supply the company with different services. More than 90 businesses attended the meeting, in which they were presented with Arauco’s model for work with associates as part of the local suppliers development program.
While construction on the mill moves ahead, 200 young people from Teno, Curicó, and neighboring areas are being trained at the technical education school launched by Arauco, in alliance with INACAP. A high percentage of these young people will become workers at the Teno panel mill, while the rest will have certified skills to apply for jobs at service-providing businesses for the company or jobs in other industries.
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