With the Finnish forest giant Metsä Group following the footsteps of UPM and Stora Enso and announcing its full withdrawal from the Russian market, it marks that the Finnish timber industry giant has completely withdrawn from its business layout in Russia.
Previously, Finland has always been an important participant in the Russian forest industry and is one of the top three importers in the Russian forest market. However, with a series of sanctions imposed by Europe on Russia, UPM and Stora Enso decided to withdraw from the Russian market in April and August 2023, respectively, and Metsä Group finally stopped all its business activities in Russia in 2024, including the operation of Svir sawmills, wood procurement and cardboard sales.
According to a statement from the Metsä Group, the group no longer holds any assets in Russia. But this decision has undoubtedly exacerbated the tension in timber resources in Finland and even the entire European Union. Especially in 2023, Finland became one of the countries most affected by Russian sanctions, and manufacturers in its southeast region are highly dependent on Russian fiber supplies to produce paper and plywood products.
Metsa Svir sawmill was once an important part of Finland's wood processing industry, with a sawmill capacity of up to 280,000 cubic meters and a wood chip capacity of 150,000 cubic meters. However, with the withdrawal of the Metsa Group, the closure of the sawmill has put great pressure on the wood resources of Finland and even the European Union. Ali Harlin, a research professor at the VTT Technical Research Center of Finland, pointed out: "We have fallen into a serious shortage of wood, especially in southeastern Finland." He further emphasized that wood supply has become one of the key challenges facing the country's 33 billion euro industry.
Quoted from: pulpaperinfo
