Russian timber industry news #20-2016

– LDK-3 has started to install the equipment and mount the premises of a new sawmill worth RUR 1 billion. Trial run of the line will take place in the spring of 2017. The factory will operate the machinery by Linck and Springer, as well as a biofuel boiler by Polytechnik. After this, the second stage of modernization will start: a contract worth RUR 300 million is concluded with Valutec for the supply of 12 periodic and 5 continuous drying chambers. This is the largest contract of the Swedish company in Russia after the order of Asia Les in 2014: the rated drying capacity of all cameras makes up 300,000 m3. Also, contracts are concluded for the supply of sorting line (RUR 280 million, Springer), trimming and packaging units. The equipment of the second stage will be commissioned in 2018. After that, the raw wood processing volume at LDK-3 will amount to 550,000 m3 per year. According to WhatWood, LDK-3 currently runs equipment which is mainly manufactured in the 1990s, except for the modern pellet line by CPM/Hekotek with rated capacity of 100,000 tonnes. The sawing line is based on HewSaw R115/200 unit (1992) and produces up to 120,000 m3 of lumber for the markets of Europe and Egypt. Detailed description of rated capacities and equipment of Top 50 softwood sawmills in Russia is available in WhatWood guidebook.

– Sveza Ust-Izhora plywood mill is implementing a project to increase production of large-format plywood by 10,000 m3: a new line of veneer drying supplied by Fezer (Brazil) and Plytec (Finland) will be installed in December 2016.

– Head of Karelia Alexander Khudilainen has offered to sell the controlling stake in the state-owned holding company Karellesprom. If the proposal is supported, the privatization of the company will be held in the fourth quarter of 2016.

– The company Siblesko intends to modernize Maklakovsky LDK sawmill in Krasnoyarsk region. At the first stage, investors will rebuild the sawmill, build a 10 MW boiler and install drying chambers capable to process 61,000 m3. The launch of this stage is scheduled for the first half of 2017.

More detailed news of the Russian timber industry and review of global market trends of roundwood, lumber, wood panels and pellets; exclusive articles and interviews; over 25 pages of price charts are available in our digital Russian Timber Journal.