Wood Resources International LLC: Wood Fiber Costs for Pulp Mills in the US Northwest Have Increased Faster than in Other Reg...
25 April 2015 - 8:25AM
Business Wire
Pulp mills in the US South continued to have stable wood fiber
prices in the 1Q/15 at levels lower than any other region in the
country. The dramatic increase in chip prices in the Northwest
during 2014 started to level off early in 2015, while tight fiber
supply in both the Lake State region and in the Northeast resulted
in upward price pressure, reports the North American Wood Fiber
Review.
Wood fiber costs for pulp mills in the US South were
substantially lower than the costs for pulp companies in the rest
of the US in the 1Q/15. Prices for softwood residual chips in the
Southern states were over 30 percent lower than in the Northeast,
Lake States and the Northwest, according the latest issue of the
North American Wood Fiber Review (NAWFR).
Pulplog and wood chip prices have held steady in the South for
the past 12 months at prices nearing 10-year highs. Sufficient
supply of pulplogs and residual chips and steady production levels
at the region’s pulp mills have contributed to a healthy fiber
supply and demand balance.
With pulpmills generally able to build healthy wood inventories
in the 1Q/15 and with a number of maintenance outages scheduled for
the second quarter, the stage is set for a possible reduction in
pulpwood pricing in some southern states in the near future.
Heavy snowfalls across the Northeast, excluding the northern
half of Maine, have created challenges for forest access and
transportation during the 1Q/15. Fiber inventories, particularly
those of hardwood, remained short resulting in concerns over having
sufficient supplies on hand to carry through the spring, when road
weight limitations and mud season greatly diminish harvest levels.
Pulplog prices in this region were slightly higher in the 1Q/15 as
compared the previous quarter.
Prices for both logs and chips in the Lake States were up to
record high levels as obtaining adequate fiber supplies remained a
serious challenge in the 1Q/15. Prices remained high despite the
reasonable snow levels and standard temperatures.
In the 1Q/15, wood chip prices in the US Northwest continued
their upward trend that started in late 2013, reaching their
highest levels in almost three years. In only the past 12 months,
softwood chips prices have gone up 21 percent. With the recent
increases, this region had some of the highest wood chip prices in
North America, reports the NAWFR (www.woodprices.com). With
additional residual chips generated by increased lumber production
in the coming months, it is likely that chip prices will decline
later in 2015.
The North American Wood Fiber Review has tracked wood fiber
markets in the US and Canada for over 20 years and it is the only
publication that includes prices for sawlogs, pulpwood, wood chips
and biomass in North America. The 36-page quarterly report includes
wood market updates for 15 regions on the continent in addition to
the latest export statistics for sawlogs, wood pellets and wood
chips.
Wood Resources International LLC (WRI), an internationally
recognized forest industry-consulting firm established in 1987,
publishes two quarterly timber price reports and have subscribers
in over 30 countries. The Wood Resource Quarterly, established in
1988, is a 52-page market report and includes sawlog prices,
pulpwood and wood chip price and market commentary to developments
in global timber, biomass and forest industry. The other report,
the North Americam Wood Fiber Review, tracks prices of sawlogs,
pulpwood, wood chips and biomass in most regions of Canada and the
US.
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Ekstrominfo@wri-ltd.comwww.woodprices.com