Metla Project 50200

Effects of forest-use constraints on wood purchasing potential - wood user's point of view

Duration: 2008-2011   
Research Programme: Safeguarding forest biodiversity - policy instruments and socio-economic impacts

Objectives

Photo: Metla/Tuula Nuutinen

There are many uncertainties in the present operational environment of sawmill companies in Finland. Problems related to purchasing of raw material, due to increasing set-aside of forest land and the raise of customs fee in Russia, is one example of potential risks. Due to age-class distribution of forests the proportion of thinnings, compared to clear cuttings, is expected to increase during the next decades. Expansion of purchasing areas and weakening of harvesting conditions would increase raw material costs and furthermore put pressure on companies to increase prices of end products and/or to decrease stumpage prices of timber. Currently, the demand of sawn timber is smaller than the supply in Europe, which has led to decrease in production in Finnish sawmills. In order to guarantee their competitiveness, sawmill companies should have tools for anticipating development of the raw material and end product markets.

The aim of the project is to assess the adaptive capacity of sawmill companies in respect to the changes of timber (saw log) purchase environment. The effects of setting aside forest land from wood production due to conservation and other land-use interests, will be studied. In practice, adaptation to the changes of operational environment depends on a company, and company data is a business secret. Therefore, this research is based on hypothetical sawmills in Finland. The sensitivity analysis of raw material (saw log) markets is based on calculations, in which multi-source National Forest Inventory (MS-NFI) data of Metla are utilised. North Karelia region in the eastern part of Finland has been selected as the target area of the research project.

The research corresponds to the information need presented in Finland's National Forest Programme 2015 concerning the effects of land use restrictions to the utilisation of regional cutting possibilities. Furthermore, the results will support the consideration of operational environment of sawmill companies when making decisions on forest- and environment policy.

Results

Photo: Metla/Leena Kärkkäinen

• Newsletters
• Seminars
• Publications
• Summary about the results

Photo: Metla/Leena Kärkkäinen

Advisory group

• Simo Jaakkola, Senior Executive Vice President, The Trade Association of Finnish Forestry and Earth Moving Contractors
• Hannu Jokinen, Director, Metsähallitus
• Erno Järvinen, Research Manager, The Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners (MTK)
• Mikko Kuusinen, Ministry of the Environment
• Liisa Mäkijärvi, Executive Director, The Finnish Forest Foundation
• Mikko Peltonen, Research Director, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
• Anders Portin, Senior Vice President, Forestry and Infrastructure, The Finnish Forest Industries
• Jukka-Pekka Ranta, Managing Director, Finnish Sawmills Association
• Timo Rautarinta, Research Secretary, Wood and Allied Workers´ Union
• Reima Sutinen, Senior Adviser, Ministry of Employment and the Economy
• Erkki Verkasalo, Professor of wood science, The Finnish Forest Research Institute
  

Partners and the research group

The members of the research group are: Hannu Hirvelä, Metla Markku Husso, EFI Leena Kärkkäinen, Metla Alexander Moiseyev, EFI Helena Mäkelä, Metla Tuula Nuutinen, Metla (project leader) Martti Rautanen, University of Helsinki Anne Toppinen, University of Helsinki Funding The project is funded by The Finnish Forest Foundation and the partners of the project.

Linkages to other research projects

• This project is a part of the wider project “Impacts of nature conservation on wood procurement possibilities and local economy”, which belongs to the research programme “Safeguarding forest biodiversity - policy instruments and socio-economic impacts (TUK)”. Within this framework project will co-operate e.g. with the project “Impacts of forest conservation on the Finnish forest sector in the changing business environment”.
• The project supports projects such as “Assessing quantity, quality and value of wood raw-material for timber trade and procurement” and “Raw material potentials, properties, suitability and competitiveness of Scots pine and Norway spruce in wood product industries”. Both of these projects belongs to the research programme "Renewing wood product value chains and timber procurement solutions (PUU)".
• The project has also linkages to the project “Russia in flux - impacts of changes in forest and economic policy and business preconditions in Russia and Finland”.

Project leader: Kärkkäinen, Leena
The Finnish Forest Research Institute, Joensuu Office, PL 68, FI-80101 JOENSUU, FINLAND
Phone: +358 10 211 5083 Telefax:
E-mail: leena.karkkainen@metla.fi

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Updated 24.05.2012
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