18 December 2007

Guangxi Province sees rapid development of plywood

China’s Guangxi Province has been listed as a key national area for fast growing and high yielding plantation bases. As a result, the Province has had the advantage of building a booming plywood industry in which the number of plywood enterprises has increased nearly tenfold, from 39 in 2000 to 400 in 2007. By the end of 2006, the capacity of Guangxi plywood production reached 2.8 million m³ with a value of RMB2.8 billion yuan (about USD3.8 million).
The plywood industry has helped to rapidly develop Guangxi’s forest industry.
In order to guarantee supply of raw materials, many plywood enterprises establish their own forest plantations. The rapid development of the Guangxi plywood industry has also driven the development of afforestation, logging, and transportation initiatives. In addition, the development of the plywood industry also provides employment opportunities, increases farmers’ income and promotes the development of the regional economy.
Guangxi is one of the regions that have fast growing and high yielding plantation bases. At present, there are 220 million hectares of forested land, of which 60% is commercial forest land. Guangxi’s plywood industry is expected to reach a production capacity of 5 million m³, generate RMB 6 billion yuan (about USD815 million) of sales, and create USD 100 million of foreign exchange.
Plywood mill adds another 100,000 m³ to production capacity Guangxi Shanghua Forestry Co., Ltd. added a new plywood mill to increase its annual output to 100,000 m³ mill to increase its annual output to 100,000 m³ in its Shangsi County operations. The company built its operations in September 2006, with an aim to integrate forest plantation bases with plywood production facilities. The company has invested about USD100 million, of which USD60 million was used to build a fast growing and high yielding eucalyptus plantation and USD40 million was dedicated to building a new plywood mill. The new mill has the capacity to produce a total output of 17,000 m² of rotary veneer and 28,000 m² of plywood.
Fourteen peeling lathes, 17 pre-pressers, and 15 hot presses and 7 sanders have been installed in the new mill. The main products of the mill are plywood, decorative veneer, flooring materials and package materials. The company also has the largest eucalyptus plywood mill, which produces different kinds of panels and advanced equipment.