Germany\u2019s sawmills are short of softwood, particularly spruce. The poor supply situation and its causes were discussed by participants at this year\u2019s Holzb\u00f6rse Rosenheim, organized by Matthias Obermaier and his son Marinus, who runs the sawmill in Irschenberg and also serves as spokesperson for the DeSH Regional Advisory Board in Bavaria.<\/p>\n
The opening topic was the general trend of softwood log prices, which have risen noticeably in recent months. Matthias Obermaier even spoke of an escalation and a \u201crun on logs\u201d that began during the summer holidays.<\/p>\n
Until the holiday season, everyone had been counting on the bark beetle, which this year \u2013 much to the delight of forest owners \u2013 largely failed to appear. This led to repeated statements throughout the year: \u201cThere has never been so little wood on the market!\u201d Matthias Obermaier added: \u201cWhat you bought, you essentially bought from someone else.\u201d In the first half of 2025, Germany\u2019s sawmill industry reduced its production by 8% compared with the previous year.<\/p>\n
Logs only seemingly expensive \u2013 more stable than gold<\/strong><\/p>\n Low supply and high demand naturally lead to rising prices. This is true for nominal prices. Marinus Obermaier, however, compared inflation-adjusted real log prices since 1970 and found that, relative to general price levels, wood is actually becoming cheaper. By today\u2019s standards, wood cost around \u20ac300\/Fm in 1970. \u201cThe real value of wood has declined dramatically since 1970,\u201d Obermaier commented.<\/p>\n Another chart compared the softwood log price index with that of gold. Despite sharp price swings in 2021 and 2022, the wood price index appears almost flat near the zero line compared with gold. In other words, logs are only seemingly expensive. \u201cThe price level today is not higher than in 1990,\u201d Matthias Obermaier emphasized repeatedly.<\/p>\n Steady increases and buyer changes<\/strong><\/p>\n Returning to day-to-day operations: since August, the price for spruce sawlogs has been rising by \u20ac2\u20133 per week, Obermaier reported in September. An Austrian large-scale sawmill with a plant in Bavaria posted a price of \u20ac118\/Fm and subsequently bought up all available timber in southern Bavaria. Spruce log piles in the forest were sometimes found \u201cre-tagged,\u201d spontaneously changing ownership. At the time of the Holzb\u00f6rse, prices for spruce short logs in southern Bavaria had settled at \u20ac118\u2013122\/Fm, while long spruce logs were at \u20ac130\/Fm or more.<\/p>\n Prices for pine sawlogs in central Bavaria are around \u20ac90\u2013100\/Fm, depending on the supplier. Saw-quality larch has already exceeded the \u20ac150 mark.<\/p>\n Log piles at the forest edge<\/strong><\/p>\n Even representatives from northern Bavaria traveled to Rosenheim to follow the discussions and possibly find a way out of the current shortage. The situation in northern Bavaria stems from the insolvency of the Ziegler Group. Until June, there was a massive backlog of wood that Ziegler no longer collected after its plant closure. After that, almost no wood arrived, even though the new owner, Rettenmeier, had drastically reduced sawing volumes.<\/p>\n One reason for this harvesting restraint, according to sawmill operators, is the absence of the bark beetle. Another is the very good agricultural prices and yields this season. \u201cFarmers simply don\u2019t need money from selling wood, so they don\u2019t go into the forest,\u201d one participant explained.<\/p>\n Beyond this regional disruption, the entire Central European wood market is affected by massive inventory losses in bark beetle-affected areas. Sawmills in these regions, such as Sauerland, northern Hesse, and the Harz, increasingly source their logs via long-distance transport from southern Germany, creating a domino effect. This results in an overall shortage of wood on the market. Neighboring countries, like the Czech Republic and Austria, cannot help, as they themselves are dealing with substantial spruce losses.<\/p>\n Sawmilling to retain staff<\/strong><\/p>\n One might think that sawmills could simply reduce production to match the available wood. But it is not that simple. One participant noted: \u201cThe limit to which a large sawmill can reduce production without permanently shutting down machines and laying off staff is around 80%. You have to produce to keep your workforce. That\u2019s why sawmills push log and sawn timber prices to the limit.\u201d<\/p>\n In other words, whether German sawmills are currently profitable is secondary, especially for large operations. The priority is maintaining operations. Many are likely drawing on reserves built up during the good years up to 2022, as the economic outlook for the construction sector\u2014and thus the sawmill industry\u2014remains bleak.<\/p>\n Neither the domestic nor export markets show signs of significant recovery, although wood product prices rose slightly in September. The unanimous conclusion at the Holzb\u00f6rse: the high demand for logs is driven solely by fear of undersupply.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Germany\u2019s sawmills are short of softwood, particularly spruce. The poor supply situation and its causes were discussed by participants at this year\u2019s Holzb\u00f6rse Rosenheim, organized by Matthias Obermaier and his son Marinus, who runs the sawmill in Irschenberg and also … Continue reading