In January, the consumer prices for wood pellets of quality ENplus A1 in Austria rose relatively sharply. The average price for pellets (delivery quantity 6t) is currently 24.90 cents / kg. This is 1.6% more than in December and 3.3% more than in January 2018.

The highest pellet prices were reported as usual in western Austria, where the average price is 26.77 C / kg . The cheapest are pellets in the north with an average of 24.47 C / kg cents / kg. In the south they cost an average of 24.89 C / kg .

Sack pellets cost on average € 4.18 per 15 kg bag (when ordering by pallet) or 27.88 cents / kg . Their price rose 1.3% from December and 2.7% from January 2018.

After more than three years of work supported by the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ) Peru’s National Forestry and Wildlife Service (SERFOR) was handed DataBOSQUE software which will facilitate reliable timber tracking. DataBOSQUE was developed in close cooperation with the private sector and public forestry institutions at the national and regional levels.

Distribution of this software will be free and a series of training events have been arranged jointly by SERFOR and GIZ aimed at training trainers in the different Amazonian regions (Loreto, Ucayali, Madre de Dios, San Martín and Junín).

Most deforestation occurs in plots under 5 hectares

Peru’s Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, together with the Ministry of Environment, reported in December last year that deforestation in 2017 in the Peruvian Amazon was 155,914 hectares. Compared to a year earlier this represented a 5.3% decline.

It was reported that the majority of the forest loss occurred in plots under five hectares and 60% of the deforestation was concentrated in the Departments of Ucayali, Madre de Dios, Huánuco and Loreto. The area of Peru’s Amazonian forest in 2017 was reported as 68,577,351 hectares.

Wikipedia writes “Most Peruvian territory is covered by dense forests on the east side of the Andes, yet only 5% of Peruvians live in this area. More than 60% of Peruvian territory is covered by the Amazon rainforest, more than in any other country.”

Chilean officials share experiences in forest management

In order to share and exchange successful experiences in the forestry sector of Peru and Chile, officials of the National Forestry Corporation and the National Forestry Institute of Chile, visited officials and producers in the forestry sector in Cajamarca the capital and largest city of the Cajamarca Region as well as an important cultural and commercial centre in the northern Andes.

During their stay in Cajamarca, Chilean officials presented the history of their country’s forestry development, from the depredation of their forests to the installation of forest plantations, as a resource to improve the environment, generate ecosystem services and contribute to improving the quality of life of the Chilean producers.

Wood products company Setra is reporting an operating profit of SEK 310 million ($34.4 million) for 2018. This figure includes non-recurring items of SEK -45 million ($34.4 million). Net sales totalled SEK 4,480 million ($498 million).

“We’re reporting an operating profit, adjusted for non-recurring items, of SEK 355 million ($39.4 million) for 2018, which is an improvement of SEK 176 million ($19.6 million) on the previous year.

The favourable market conditions of 2017 continued in 2018, despite a decline in consumption during the final months of the year, primarily in China and on the North African markets. We envisage continued good demand among our customers in Europe as well as recovery in China and Egypt above all,” said Hannele Arvonen, President and CEO at Setra.

Cash flow from operating activities for 2018 amounted to SEK 426 million ($47.3 million). The Group’s financial position is strong, with net financial debt amounting to SEK -121 million ($13.4 million) at the end of the period, which corresponds to a net debt/equity ratio of -8%.

Setra is one of Sweden’s largest wood products companies.

Photo: Hannele Arvonen, President and CEO at Setra.

Södra is adjusting the purchase price for spruce and pine logs as well as fuel wood.

“We are seeing a slowdown in the economy at the same time as wood supplies are high and forestry activity is intense. As a result, the market price of saw logs is declining,” the company said.

“Our operating environment is more unsettled, and we are entering a situation marked by greater uncertainty in the markets,” said Olof Hansson, President of the Södra Skog business area.

At the same time, demand for biofuel remains high. “We are currently experiencing increased demand primarily for fuel wood, driven by the energy transition we are seeing in society,” continued Olof.

Jussi Malmi, the Managing Director of Logset Oy, will start working for another employer from February 1st, 2019. Logset has already started looking for a new Managing Director.

Logset Oy is a Finnish forest machine manufacturer located in Koivulahti, near Vaasa. The company was established in 1992 and today it has approximately 70 employees.

The Oregon Department of Forestry announced the selection of Lena Tucker as the next Deputy State Forester. Tucker follows Nancy Hirsch, who retired from the position in December. Under the department’s current structure, the Deputy State Forester serves as the Deputy Director for Operations, overseeing the agency’s operating programs in Fire Protection, Private Forests, and State Forests.

“I am very excited to work with Lena in her new role. She has a proven record of leadership within the department and at the local and national levels,” said State Forester Peter Daugherty.

Tucker joined the department in 1994. She brings a range of experience from geographic areas throughout Oregon and has worked in all of the department’s program areas, including Fire Protection. Most recently she served as the agency’s Private Forests Division Chief, where she focused on implementation of the Oregon Forest Practices Act, forest health, technical assistance programs to help private forest landowners and the Urban and Community Forestry Program. She earned her bachelor’s degree in forest management from Northern Arizona University. Tucker, who lives in Sweet Home, Ore., is a member of that city’s Tree Commission and has been involved nationally with the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) for over a decade. She is also a Certified Forester through the Society of American Foresters.

“I am committed to the mission of ODF: serving Oregonians by protecting, managing and promoting stewardship of Oregon’s forests to enhance environmental, economic, and community sustainability,” Tucker said.

Under an existing transition plan, Tucker will take over full responsibility for the position on July 1, 2019.

Photo: Lena Tucker

Roseburg Forest Products recently announced that Mike Reardon has been named Director of Industrial Products Manufacturing, effective Jan. 1, 2019. In his new role, Reardon will oversee the entirety of Roseburg’s Industrial Products manufacturing structure. This is the third promotion for Reardon since he rejoined Roseburg in January 2017 as Plant Manager for the company‘s composite panel plant in Simsboro, La. Reardon served as plant manager for another Roseburg facility from 2006-2009.

“In the past two years, Mike has made a significant impact through process improvements at Simsboro and our other industrial products plants,” Industrial Products Business Director Jim Buffington said. “After more than 30 years in wood products, he brings a depth and scope of experience to improve and enhance oversight of our operations.”

Mike Henry will replace Reardon as Plant Manager at Simsboro Composites, effective Jan. 14, 2019. Henry brings 25 years of experience successfully managing particleboard, MDF and TFL operations for companies including Jeld-Wen, Del-Tin Fiber and Arauco. He most recently served as vice president of operations for Essential Cabinetry Group in Greenville, S.C

Photo: Mike Reardon has been named RFP Director of Industrial Products Manufacturing

Roseburg Forest Products is pleased to announce that Jake Elston will join the company as Senior Vice President of Operations on Feb. 18, 2019. In his new role, Elston will be responsible for all Roseburg manufacturing operations, including both industrial and structural products.

Elston has an established and respected reputation in the wood products industry, with 23 years of experience in manufacturing and operations. He began his career as a superintendent and technical director at Willamette Industries, became manufacturing director for Weyerhaeuser Co.’s North American Composites Business, and moved on to Arauco North America, where he served most recently as Vice President of Operations.

Elston served seven years as an aviator, mission commander and flight instructor for the U.S. Navy. He earned an MBA from the University of Oregon and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

“We are thrilled to have Jake join the executive team at Roseburg,” Roseburg President and CEO Grady Mulbery said. “His extensive history with wood products, including broad national and international experience, allows us to structure our executive leadership to maximize opportunities for continued growth and development.”

Elston will work closely with Roseburg’s Ashlee Cribb, who has been promoted to Senior Vice President – Chief Commercial Officer, responsible for the sales, marketing and logistics functions, and the supply chain initiatives for the company.

“While the face of the company remains unchanged in the marketplace, our internal ability to leverage the strengths and collaboration that Jake and Ashlee bring to the table will propel Roseburg to continued success in future opportunities,” Mulbery said.

Last week we covered Friday Offcuts story on the shortage of workers for planting trees. (see www.fridayoffcuts.com). It went like this: Pay rates of $400 a day are not enough to attract workers to plant trees, potentially putting a brake on the Government’s one billion trees by 2028 campaign. Forest nurseries have doubled plantings to 100 million tree seedings in response to Government incentives, but finding staff is the biggest hurdle to getting them in the ground.

Forest Management director David Janett said the bottleneck was not so much acquiring seedlings from forest nurseries, but finding people to plant the trees. “We are fully booked up for this year.” Planting rates in the North Island were reaching 60 cents a tree, which equated to pay rates of $300 to $400 a day. “And we still can’t get people.”

The story has had two reported feedbacks with RNZ running a response from Forest & Bird challenging the MPI programme itself (see here)** and a worker advocate challenging the worth of the roles: Here’s why no-one wants to plant trees for $400 a day – New Zealanders aren’t taking short-term jobs because it’s not worth their time to do so, workers’ advocate say. They were responding to reporting last week of a shortage of people to plant the trees required by the Government’s one billion trees by 2028 campaign.

Pay rates in the North Island are up to 60c a tree, or up to $400 a day if workers plant a tree a minute over 10 hours. There have also been reports of shortages of staff for meatworks, construction and agricultural roles.

First Union general secretary Dennis Maga said it was disingenuous to claim there were not enough willing workers.

“If you look at the industries that are claiming a worker shortage they’re all low paid, some have even broken the law through the exploitation and human trafficking of migrant workers,” he said.

“There’s a reason no-one wants to work in these jobs, their time isn’t worth the money and they often cannot afford to live on what some of these unethical businesses choose to offer. And it is a choice, right, what’s really disheartening is that it’s not like the money isn’t there. Horticulture for example is one of our highest export earners.”

He said many of the industries struggling to find workers had previously been staffed by international students but the number of students coming to New Zealand had dropped significantly.

In the 2017/18 financial year, there were 104,781 approved student visa applications. For 2018/2019, it was 44,970. “We end up with a split labour market. Kiwis won’t do the dirty, dangerous low-paying jobs.” He said employers finding it hard to hire should look at their strategy. “If they want to sustain their business in their industry they need to attract the young ones.”

https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2018652239/some-trees-in-mpi-s-programme-actually-weeds-forest-and-bird

Photo: First Union general secretary Dennis Maga