APP taps ex-ST Engg executive to tackle haze

Singapore

CONTROVERSY-mired paper giant Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) has hired Bernard Tan, formerly chief marketing officer of ST Engineering and president of ST Kinetics, to drive sustainability work at the paper giant.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Mr Tan said that his immediate priority is to address the haze issue, especially since weather patterns show that this year will be drier than last year, though wetter than 2015 which was marked by El Nino.

The dry season will last from July to October, according to APP's projections. But Mr Tan said that he was "cautiously optimistic" about the haze situation this year, having seen the efforts and effects of the firm's programmes on the ground.

Mr Tan was on June 1 appointed managing director for corporate affairs and sustainability at APP, as well as country president for its parent company Sinar Mas Group with commercial responsibility for its businesses in Singapore. Both were newly created positions.

Besides ST Engineering, the 50-year-old also previously worked at DBS as country head in Taiwan and Indonesia. Before that, he spent 22 years in the Singapore Armed Forces where he retired with the rank of brigadier-general.

Explaining why the APP and Sinar Mas positions were created, Mr Tan said that the firm and its shareholders had wanted someone to take a look at the strategic direction in corporate affairs and sustainability for APP outside of day-to-day operations.

In addition, Singapore was an important market where senior representation was required to take charge of the Sinar Mas business and resolve ongoing issues, he told reporters.

APP's paper products were pulled from the shelves of major retailers in Singapore in 2015, after the government served the firm with several legal notices under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act requesting information on four of its suppliers.

Giving an update on the group's fire prevention efforts, Mr Tan said that the firm has invested over US$80 million since 2015 to strengthen its integrated fire management programme. This includes investing in new technologies such as infra-red cameras and mini-satellites to better monitor the ground situation as well as training and equipping more than 2,700 firefighters.

Mr Tan is also setting up a new fire audit team which will review APP's programmes to combat the haze and assess how ready and effective they are. This will be led by Aloysius Phua, who also on June 1 joined Sinar Mas Group, as a government relations manager.

Mr Phua, 59, was previously Asia-Pacific director of sales for CM-Labs Simulation. Like Mr Tan, he has a military background, but in the navy which he left in 2005.

Emphasising how it is in the group's self-interest not to have forest fires, Mr Tan said that trees destroyed by fire cannot be replaced instantly; the loss of wood supply also affects the entire industry supply chain.

As one of the largest players in the industry, APP wants to lead the way and set the industry standard. As that happens, its products will naturally be brought back to retailers' shelves in Singapore, he added.

While Singapore is not a large market, it is important for its "brand value", said Mr Tan.

Asked about the investigations by the National Environment Agency (NEA) under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, Mr Tan said that he knows the people and issues involved. "We'll continue to engage NEA at this stage. I hope to be able to overcome some of the issues that are still placed before us, but given the investigation is ongoing, I won't be able to comment much further on the issue."

Mr Tan's appointment comes after the group's outspoken sustainability chief Aida Greenbury abruptly left in May, after 13 years with APP. She has been replaced by Elim Sritaba, who will report to Mr Tan.