News in timber

Despite millions in state subsidies, Maine biomass company Stored Solar has filed for bankruptcy. The company says it owes $17.8 million to creditors including an energy market investment company, the states of Maine and New Hampshire, and Maine loggers.

Anew Climate announced on Wednesday the acquisition of entities managed by The Forestland Group, which include a 1.7-million-acre timberland portfolio. The transactions are valued at approximately $1.8 million, representing one of the largest private conservation-focused forest investments in US history.

Rayonier has entered into two separate agreements to acquire approximately 172,400 acres of high-quality commercial timberland located in Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana for an aggregate purchase price of $474 million from Manulife Investment Management.

The British Columbia provincial government on Wednesday provided an update on the Old Growth Strategic Review. According to the latest numbers, old-growth logging in BC has decreased to the lowest level on record.

On Friday, the province of Prince Edward Island (PEI) announced that in the wake of Hurricane Fiona’s unprecedented impact, the government has formed a task force to address the immediate needs of private woodlot owners and the forestry industry.

On Wednesday, a Jefferson County Superior Court judge ruled against the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, in a case the plaintiffs say will have wide implications on how the agency manages state forests.

At a special board meeting on Wednesday, the Oregon Board of Forestry approved more than 100 changes to the Forest Practice Act. The approved changes will impact timber harvesting activities on more than 10 million acres of private and non-federal forests in the state.

Timberland Investment Resources Europe (TIR) has announced that it is seeking to raise US$250 million for a sustainable forestry and natural capital fund which will investment in US assets. The “Sustainable Forestry & Natural Capital Fund” will focus on investment mainly in the southern region of the US.

The US National Interagency Fire Center reported on Monday that the total number of large wildfires and complexes currently burning in the US has been reduced to 32 from last week’s report of 72. More than 463,512 acres are currently burning across 8 different states.

Bluesource Sustainable Forest Co. announced today that it has purchased 29,019 acres of forestland in Michigan from The Lyme Timber Company. The land will be part of 90+ North American forest carbon projects covering over 4-million acres.