SCG to launch ecofriendly fax paper

Idea Green is fax paper with 30 per cent of its content made of ecofibre - 30 per cent recycled white paper and 70 per cent pulp.

Within a year, the product will help to boost the company's market share in the faxpaper market to 1015 per cent, with sales revenue of Bt600 mil¬lion, said president Chavalit Ekabut.

Chavalit said demand for paper had been declining. Manufacturers are suffering production costs that have risen 1520 per cent from two years ago due to higher oil prices, while paper prices cannot be raised due to fierce competition. Overseas paper prices, particularly those made from ecofibre, are 1.8 times higher than domestic prices.

"We will raise the export ratio later," Chavalit said.

SCG's annual capacity is 600,000 tonnes and 80 per cent is marketed domestically.

Meanwhile, the company will focus more on innovative products. For example, the ecofibre content of Idea Green will be raised from 30 per cent. "We don't promote greater use of paper, but wiser consumption. Ecofibre comes from used white paper and the 30percent content means a reduction of pulp by the same level," he said.

The domestic sales volume of writ¬ing paper now totals 1 million tonnes a year, worth Bt30 billion, according to Montri Mahaphruekphong, direc¬tor of marketing. Fax paper accounts for Bt6 billion.

He forecasts the industry's growth rate will be close to gross domestic product, but fax paper's rate will be 10 per cent. In the past five years, the growth rate of fax paper was 13 per cent per annum.

"There's still room for growth as Thailand's percapita paper con¬sumption is only 60 kilograms, com¬pared to 145 in Singapore and 250 in Japan," Montri said.