Energy Queensland has approximately 1.5 million power poles and replaces approximately 30,000 each year. Since the implementation of the regional forest agreement, (RFA) at the beginning of the century, access to native hardwood forests is constantly diminishing. One of the cornerstones of the RFA was the supply of hardwood through plantations under the auspices of the managed investment schemes (MIS) which turned out to be all but a complete failure. Consequently, the risk of being able to obtain adequate supplies of poles increases. For the past fifteen years Energy Queensland has been managing it’s own forests to address future supply shortages and ensure that there will be access to a sustainable supply for the future. This journey has provided plenty of challenges and continues to do so. In the presentation we will look at the history of how Energy Queensland moved into becoming a forest owner, what challenges and successes they have had along the way and how they are trying to position themselves into the future to ensure and ongoing and sustainable supply of hardwood poles.