March 6, 2017: Senator the Honourable Paula Gopee-Scoon, Minister of Trade and Industry along with Senator the Honourable Clarence Rambharat, Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries and senior executives of both Ministries toured the facilities of the leading paper converters in the Caribbean Region, Grand Bay Paper Products on Friday March 3, 2017. This tour is a part of the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s on-going visits to companies across Trinidad and Tobago to lend support to local manufacturers, to view their operations and facilitate their needs in doing business during the country’s current challenging economic times.
In Minister Gopee-Scoon’s opening remarks she commended the executive team of Grand Bay Paper Products on its impressive operations. She acknowledged the efforts made by the company in restructuring its operations both financially and operationally. Minister Gopee-Scoon indicated that the company is poised to grow from strength to strength and it is currently a net foreign exchange earner serving several markets in the Caribbean, in particular the Cuban market. She challenged the executive team to also look closely at the Venezuelan market for market penetration.
Senator the Honourable Clarence Rambharat stated that, “apart from viewing the success of Grand Bay Paper Products in manufacturing, exports and waste recycling, I am here to accelerate our discussions on pilot farm trials utilising the calcium carbonate by-product of your process on agricultural lands, to boost soil productivity.”
Mr. Kevin Marcilliat, Managing Director, Grand Bay Paper Products in his opening remarks said, “we could not have made it this far without the support of our stakeholders. We are proud that we are creating and pioneering this industry in Trinidad and Tobago. We have been converters in the Caribbean for many years and to have a papermill here is historic. We are here to provide employment and grow foreign exchange as well as to increase trade.” Mr. Marcilliat outlined the major accomplishments for the company in 2016 some of which included the opening of new market opportunities in Cuba and Haiti, increased sales in existing markets such as Jamaica, Guyana, Belize, Barbados and Aruba and sales pipeline growth with Pricesmart Members Selection and America Fresh product lines.
Minister Gopee-Scoon enquires about the operations of Grand Bay Paper Products as Minister Rambharat and Mr. Kevin Marcilliat, Managing Director, Grand Bay Paper Products and Senior Executives look on.
Senator the Honourable Paula Gopee-Scoon, Minister of Trade and Industry (middle) and Senator the Honourable Clarence Rambharat, Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries (right) examine the quality of a piece of tissue presented to them by Mr. Kevin Marcilliat, Managing Director, Grand Bay Paper Products looks on.
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For further information please contact:
The Corporate Communications Unit
Ministry of Trade and Industry
868-623-8480/623-2931 ext. 2722