Importation of softwood logs to Sweden reached a 10 year high in 2013

Importation of softwood logs to Sweden reached a 10-year high in 2013 with Norway and Latvia being the major suppliers of both pulplogs and sawlogs, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly on Sunday. It is reported that, the major log suppliers to Sweden in 2013 were Latvia, Norway, Estonia and Finland. During the past few years, between 10-15 percent of the imported log volume have been sawlogs destined for sawmills in the southern part of Sweden, of which most have been sourced in Norway. Almost 90 percent of imported logs in 2013 were pulplogs. The two major supplying countries have been Norway and Latvia ,with other neighboring countries including Finland, Russia and Estonia following far behind. The total softwood log shipments from Norway to Sweden, including sawlogs and pulpwood, reached just over 2 million cubic metres in 2013, up from 1.4 million cubic metres in 2012 and only 709,000 cubic metres in 2011. Sweden is the fourth largest importer of logs in the world, despite having forests that cover almost two-thirds of the country. The import volumes have been growing steadily the past five years, with 2013 imports being almost 60 percent higher than five years ago.