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Swedish sawmills are investing the profits they have earned in good years into staggering sawmill investments. Capacity is being increased to the theoretical upper limit of harvesting opportunities.<\/p>\n
This year, Sweden is investing a total of 4.2 billion Swedish krona, equivalent to 336 million euros, in sawmilling. This sum is the largest ever. This further signifies intensifying competition for the already scarce timber resources.<\/p>\n
Although the demand for lumber has declined in Sweden, the industry believes in the future. Additionally, Swedish sawmills have managed to maintain their profitability because the Swedish krona, which has sunk to record lows against the euro, is boosting softwood lumber exports. At the same time, sawmill companies have accumulated kronas in their cash reserves thanks to the prolonged high-demand cycle.<\/p>\n
Among the boldest investors is the forest company SCA, which operates in central and northern Sweden. They are preparing to build a massive sawmill on the shores of the Gulf of Bothnia in Rundviken, just south of Ume\u00e5, in collaboration with the forest company Holmen.<\/p>\n
The production capacity of the Rundviken sawmill is set to increase to 900,000 cubic meters of softwood lumber, making it larger than Mets\u00e4 Fibre's Rauma sawmill. Currently, SCA produces over two million cubic meters of softwood lumber annually.<\/p>\n
In J\u00e4mtlan, SCA is currently making changes that will allow the G\u00e4ll\u00f6 sawmill to switch to the widely cultivated Swedish pine of North American origin.<\/p>\n
A shortage of timber<\/strong><\/p>\n The investment rush in sawmills is pushing Swedish timber harvesting beyond long-term sustainable harvesting opportunities. For example, last year, Sweden's timber harvesting reached nearly 96 million cubic meters, which is about one-fifth more than Finland's timber harvesting.<\/p>\n In Sweden, the current level of timber harvesting can be increased by approximately six million cubic meters without compromising sustainability. However, this is a meager consolation for the sawmills because the growth potential is mainly in birch harvesting in the north.<\/p>\n In southern Sweden, they are already harvesting near the sustainability limits. Local sawmills have to source timber from Central and Northern Sweden as well as Norway to keep their production running.<\/p>\n In Sweden, the current level of timber harvesting can be increased by approximately six million cubic meters without compromising sustainability. However, this is a meager consolation for the sawmills because the growth potential is mainly in birch harvesting in the north.<\/p>\n In southern Sweden, they are already harvesting near the sustainability limits. Local sawmills have to source timber from Central and Northern Sweden as well as Norway to keep their production running.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Swedish sawmills are investing the profits they have earned in good years into staggering sawmill investments. Capacity is being increased to the theoretical upper limit of harvesting opportunities. This year, Sweden is investing a total of 4.2 billion Swedish krona, … Continue reading