Russia: Russia unable to finance timber processing
MOSCOW, November 14 (RIA Novosti): On Tuesday, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said after talks with his Finnish counterpart Matti Vanhanen that export duty on raw timber would, at best, be raised next fall.
Russian timber companies supported the decision not to raise the duty to 50 euros per 1 cubic meter because most investment projects, due to be established through the higher export duties, will need credit. Large timber producers will suffer because restrictive duties helped them to squeeze small companies from the market. The global economic crisis forced the Russian government to back down. "The companies are now unable to invest in new timber processing facilities," Anastasia Kopylova, a senior analyst with global timber trader Lesprom Network, told the paper.
"Russia must export timber because of reduced corporate-modernization investment programs," said Natalia Pinyagina, director of the Arkhangelsk Pulp and Paper Mill's department for cooperation with state agencies. She said Russia's Far East had no timber processing facilities, and that regional timber companies were on the verge of bankruptcy. National timber companies said the government had made a reasonable tactical decision in the current situation. Ilim Group board chairman Zakhar Smushkin said income from regular timber export would have a positive influence on the financial standing of timber companies and would also help create jobs.
Smushkin said timber export duties would be raised in the long-term. "Moscow could take advantage of the delay during another round of WTO accession talks, Kopylova told the paper. The decision to freeze timber export duties will mainly affect large timber producers. Kopylova said they had expected higher duties to lead to the end of small timber producers undercutting prices for small orders, and that they will have to wait for a subsequent export duty increase. Siksten Sunabaka, timber operations director at Finnish pulp, paper and timber manufacturer UPM-Kymmene Oyj, called the delay positive because it would give the country's timber industry some extra time, but would not influence corporate plans to reduce imports and to fell more forests in Finland. (Copyright: RIA Novosti - RIA Novosti is not responsible for the content of outside sources. )
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