Established following the closure of the Northern Pulp Mill in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia in January 2020, the Nova Scotia Forestry Innovation Transition Trust recently announced that it is investing $9.8 million (CAD) in the Family Forest Network (FFN) for a five-year pilot project. It will focus on ecologically sensitive forest treatments on 200 small private wood lots in the province.
News in international markets
China’s New Construction Starts Decline for Sixth Consecutive Month in September
For the sixth month in a row, China’s new construction starts declined in September. This is the longest continuous monthly declines since March–August in 2015. According to Reuters calculations based on January-September data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday (10-18-21), new construction starts in September fell -13.54% from a year earlier, the third month of double-digit declines.
Segezha Group to Purchase All Assets of Inter Forest Rus. for $512 Million
Segezha Group has announced that it has agreed to purchase the assets of LLC Inter Forest Rus from Bonum Capital Ltd for $515 million. Inter Forest’s assets include wood processing and logging enterprises as well as four woodworking plants, one plywood plant, a river fleet of 98 vessels, and a substantial forest resource base in the Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk regions of Russia.
Koskisen Group Announces 48 Million Euro Investment in Kärkölä, Finland Facility
Koskisen Group, a family-owned Finnish sawmill and panel industry leader, has announced a 48 million Euro investment in Kärkölä, Finland. With production scheduled to start in the summer of 2023, the unit’s new annual production will initially be 400,000 m3 of softwood sawn timber.
EACOM Timber Corp. Turns to International Recruitment to Fill Labor Gap in Northern Ontario and Northern Quebec
A shortage of available workers to fill open positions at EACOM Timber Corp.’s northern Ontario and Quebec sawmills has the company turning to an international recruitment company for assistance. EACOM has been working with the IVEY Group, a Sudbury, Ontario-based international recruitment and consulting firm, for several years to aid them in recruiting and retaining workers in their northern communities.
Binderholz Group Reaches Agreement to Take Over BSW Timber Ltd.
The Binderholz Group has reached an agreement to take over BSW Timber Ltd., the U.K.’s largest forestry and sawmill company. An agreement with Endless LLP., the largest shareholder, to acquire their shares has been reached.
Volume of Roundwood Harvested in Ireland Increased in 2019 but Value Declined
According to information released on Monday (10-11-21) from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) — the statistical agency responsible for the gathering of “information relating to economic, social and general activities and conditions” in Ireland — loggers harvested almost four million cubic meters of wood from deciduous trees in Irish forests in 2019.
Softwood Logs Shipping Off of Kangaroo Island to Support South Australia’s Booming Housing Industry
Help to support Australia’s booming housing construction industry will soon be on its way. Up to 60,000 tons of softwood logs, some of them bushfire-affected, will soon be shipping off of Kangaroo Island.
Segezha Group Building New Plywood Processing Shop and Upgrading Existing Production Lines at Vyataky Plywood Mill
The Segezha Group has announced that it is investing approximately RUB 5 billion ($69 million) in constructing a new plywood processing shop and is upgrading their existing production lines at its Vyataky Plywood Mill in Kirov, Russia.
Brazil’s Log Exports Increase 186% Year-Over-Year in September 2021
According to Lesprom Analytics, the export of logs from Brazil jumped 186.0% year-over-year in September 2021 to 357.6 thousand m3. The value of those exports increased 224.3% to $27.6 million. The average price of logs increased 13.4% to $77.3 per m3.