Visit to Dobrush Paper Mill "Geroy Truda"

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko visited Dobrush Paper Mill "Geroy Truda" on 29 October.

Upon the arrival, the head of state was traditionally interested in the state of affairs in agriculture: corn harvesting, winter plowing, and the state of winter crops. Gomel Oblast Governor Gennady Solovei briefed the President in detail on these and other issues. In his words, work has been stepped up in several areas and the necessary amount of machines has been deployed in the fields.

As for the Dobrush investment project, the head of state asked if the construction of the new factory had been completed. He was told that everything was finished. Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed the necessity to use all the wood resources. At the moment some types of wood are not involved in processing. The Dobrush Paper Mill capacities are not enough to process all the wood.

In this regard, the project to launch the production of bleached chemical-thermomechanical mass at the site of Mogilevkhimvolokno is under consideration. This is actually a semi-finished product for cardboard manufacturing in Dobrush.

According to Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Nazarov, such a facility can cost $200-250 million. Negotiations with the investor are underway. The President instructed to work out the possibility of setting up such an enterprise with the help of the government funds.

Bellesbumprom Chairman Mikhail Kasko briefed the head of state on the performance of the concern and the modernization of the pulp and paper industry.

Despite the difficulties associated with the coronavirus pandemic, the Bellesbumprom organizations have been working steadily. The enterprises fulfill all the planned parameters of the country’s social and economic development. They are expected to implement all the annual plans. “We have the lowest inventory stocks. The demand is very good,” said Mikhail Kasko.

The concern’s companies ensured growth of production and export of goods, profitability of sold products and other established indicators. By the end of the year, production is expected to exceed Br3 billion. Exports are to approach $900 million.

Thanks to the implementation of several investment projects supported by the state - both in wood processing and pulp and paper production - the industry has reached a completely new technological level, which provides a comprehensive, waste-free processing of wood resources and ensures highly marketable finished products with the greatest economic effect.

For example, the Bellesbumprom’s production of furniture increased by 43.6%, that of fiberboard by 25%, chipboard - by 6%, and plywood - by 3.4%. In general, the range of products across the Bellesbumprom’s enterprises currently includes about 75 types of goods.

"Some 81% of what we produce is exported. Our export is projected to increase by more than $250 million this year,” said the chairman of Bellesbumprom.

Aleksandr Lukashenko asked how things are at Bellesbumprom’s troubled enterprises. In particular, he announced his intention to visit the FanDOK woodworking plant in Bobruisk. The head of state was also reported in detail on the state of affairs at Vitebskdrev and Borisovdrev.

Dobrush Paper Mill is one of the subsidiaries of the Belarusian Wallpaper holding company. Its director general Aleksandr Kolyada reported on the results of the investment project to upgrade the mill and to launch the production of coated and uncoated cardboard.

According to the director general, right after the launch of the coated and uncoated cardboard manufacture the mill reported positive financial indicators. In January-September, the output doubled (in actual prices) year-on-year, with the profitability of sales being at 5.5%.

The launch of the pulp production in Belarus has made it possible to meet the need for raw materials of Bellesbumprom’s enterprises and other producers of paper, cardboard and packaging.

Aleksandr Lukashenko was showed around the mill and got familiar with the principles of operation of the main technological equipment.

The President wondered about prospects of electric buses. Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Nazarov responded by saying they are huge.

The head of state stressed that it is necessary to do everything necessary then to make such electric buses faster and ship to customers in necessary amounts. “It is necessary to make and give them away fast. Occupying the market is very important for us,” he stressed.

Bearing it in mind additional sites can be used to assemble the vehicles but Aleksandr Lukashenko noted it is necessary to properly use capabilities of MAZ itself. If, for instance, truck production and sales decline, then it is necessary to use the capacity to make buses.

“We will get back to it yet,” the head of state added.

After the tour of the enterprise the President met with its employees. “The construction of this unique facility is finally over. Probably, we can learn our lesson from many challenges we faced during its construction. And we have learned a lot: how to build and how to supervise the process. I am pleased that we have completed the construction,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

The head of state noted that the new cardboard production in Dobrush opens up new prospects not only for the town itself, but also for the country as a whole, because it will give a boost to enterprises in other regions as well.

The factory plans to purchase additional equipment for sheet cardboard. “It turns out that there is good demand for it in the market. We have agreed that you will buy  these machines in the near future (we will help you) and will scale up this line of business,” the President said.

Aleksandr Lukashenko is confident that when the company reaches its design capacity, its performance will improve pushing salaries up. “Everything is in your hands. You understand that money does not fall from the sky, you have to earn it,” the head of state noted.

The President added that the government had done a lot to create a new production at Dobrush Paper Mill and it cost a lot of money. Aleksandr Lukashenko hopes that the company’s employees will appreciate it. “You owe me only one thing: keep this enterprise going and live peacefully,” the Belarusian leader said.

The head of state recalled that the construction of the new facility in Dobrush was not easy. After problems with a foreign contractor in Belarus, a decision was taken to complete the project using domestic resources. Initially, there were doubts whether domestic specialists would be up to the task, because they lacked experience and expertise in some areas. But in the end, all the work was completed.

"We can do anything when we are sovereign, independent, when we understand that we work for ourselves and our people," Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “You have done this for your children. Because your children are needed here, not in other places where competition is already high, even in Gomel and Minsk and will be growing.Take care of this enterprise for our children,” the head of state said.

The President also urged the factory employees to analyze the information they get about the current situation in and around the country. “Things will not be easy for us. They will just not leave us alone. Our manufacturing industry is one of the reasons. No one wants us as competitors, and anyone who has similar manufactures will try their utmost to get rid of us,” he said.

The head of state also cited the machine-building industry. In this area Belarus competes well with many Western countries, which is why they want to squeeze Belarusian companies out of their markets. BelAZ, for example, holds 30% of the global market. Sanctions have been imposed on this company for a reason, said Aleksandr Lukashenko.

“The better we do, the more pressure we will face from the outside. Everything is far from simple. We have to do our best to survive. That is our number one task. I do not want to go to war, but I do not want us subjugated, either," the President stressed.

The head of state noted that Belarus is rich in wood resources. However, existing enterprises cannot process wood that overstayed. With this in mind, a dozen pellet factories were built in Belarus. Their products are in great demand, including abroad.

“Three million cubic meters of timber has overstayed. You process only half a million. And we need to process what has overstayed. Birch and aspen will also mature by this time: deciduous trees grow rapidly. We need to create additional capacities to process the wood that can be lost unless harvested,” the President said.

“The question is what we should do next. In the near future the government will report to me on how to add value to semi-finished products instead of selling them, how to build new enterprises. Foreigners are ready to come here. That is, the woodworking industry has good prospects,” Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed.

While talking to workers of Dobrush Paper Mill Aleksandr Lukashenko answered a question about why the tax concession for apartment owners has to be abolished.

The government is considering the idea now. The President explained why taxation regulations need to be adjusted as a whole. Representatives of the private sector complained in the past that Belarusian tax regulations were complicated. “And I instructed the government to review these matters and make simple tax regulations. They will not be totally simple. You have to be an economist and an accountant in order to calculate all these taxes. But things should be simplified where it is possible. Other aspects should be looked at. Things need to be polished,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

In his words, the taxation of real estate was discussed among other things. “Rural Belarusians pay the land tax, the real estate tax, and the rest. But urban Belarusians stand aside for some reason. This matter was discussed, too. I don’t know the tax rates but they won’t generate much,” the Belarusian leader noted.

Aleksandr Lukashenko gave another reason why taxation regulations are being revised. “We are not even talking about justice. We have $2 billion in unexpected expenses at the end of the year due to the need to save people. We have free vaccination, free COVID-19 treatment. I don’t want to say that everything is ideal in Belarus but it turns out it is quite good in comparison with other countries. But it costs a lot of money.”

The head of state also noted that theoretically speaking if every resident of Belarus pays $1 in this tax, it will generate only $9.5 million. “In the grand scheme of things it is nothing if we spend $2 billion on treatment alone but we could use the $9.5 million to buy something,” he remarked.

In conclusion Aleksandr Lukashenko said: “It is yet unclear whether the tax will be implemented. These matters have not been submitted for my consideration. We don’t intend to raise taxes. They are high as it is. We don’t have oil and natural gas. Because the taxable base and taxes are decent. We always wonder how to reduce them. This is why I don’t think the taxes will be large if any are implemented. But the possibility is under consideration.”