Stora Enso has announced that they will be divesting two of their sawmills in Russia, one in Nebolchi and one in Impilahti, to the local management.
In addition, the divestment includes Stora Enso’s Russian forest operation which through its harvesting supplies wood to the sawmills.
The company believed that local ownership can provide a more sustainable long-term solution for these business operations and the employees working there, after assessing the uncertainties in the Russian market.
The sawmill sites are located in Novgorod and Karelia, employing approximately 330 people and have a total annual capacity of 350,000 m3 of sawn timber, including 55,000 m3 of processed timber and 65,000 tonnes of pellets. Stora Enso’s Russian forest operations employs approximately 170 people and manages long-term harvesting rights for around 370,000 hectares.
According to Stora Enso, the transaction is, pending necessary approvals, expected to be concluded within Q2 2022 and will have no material impact on Stora Enso’s annual sales and operational EBIT.
Previously, Stora Enso announced on 2 Mar 2022 that it would stop all production and sales in Russia until further notice. The group is in a process to find a sustainable solution for the future of its three packaging plants in Russia.
