We will take a look at the 15 biggest lumber companies in the world. To skip our analysis of the recent market trends, you can go directly to see the 5 Biggest Lumber Companies in the World.
Lumber is sawn wood that has been converted into beams, planks, or boards, through wood production. It is mainly used for construction framing as well as for other homebuilding uses such as flooring, wall panels, windowpanes, etc. In addition, lumber is also used for making furniture. Softwood lumber, made from coniferous species such as pine, fir, and spruce, is supplied in standard sizes for construction purposes and accounts for the majority of lumber production.
Lumber Industry: An Analysis
According to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, China accounted for a quarter of the global consumption of sawn wood in 2020, followed by United States at 22% and Germany at 5% of the global consumption. On the production side of things, China led the charts with 18% of the global production, followed by United States with 17% and Russia with 9%, during the same year.
Similar to the other major industries across the globe, the lumber industry was also severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The lockdowns and other precautionary measures resulted in significant production constraints during the last two years, leading to lumber shortages.
The prices for lumber hit their all-time peak at $1,695 per 1000 board feet in May 2021. The prices later went down as far as $454 per 1000 board feet in August 2021 and picked up once again to reach $1,465 per 1000 board feet by February 2022. Lumber prices have taken a tumble since March 2022 and currently reside at $432 per 1000 board feet, more than 70% below their peak earlier this year.
The recent drop in lumber prices can be equally attributed to the recovery of the supply side as well as the demand destruction caused by the rising inflation and resultant interest rate hikes implemented by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Increased cost of capital has led to a slowdown in the housing market which is the largest consumer of the lumber production.
There is potential for a remarkable recovery in the housing market by late 2023 which would lift the lumber industry as well.
We have picked the top 15 companies across the globe based on their softwood lumber production figures for 2021. The list includes companies from several continents and includes privately owned companies as well as publicly listed companies. It comprises of some well-known companies such as West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG), Canfor Corporation (OTC:CFPZF), Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY), and Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP), among others.
15. Moelven Industrier ASA
Production Volume in 2021: 2,1161,000 m³
Moelv, Norway-based Moelven Industrier ASA, commonly known as the Moelven Group, is one of the largest industrial wood processing groups in Europe with 33 production companies across 41 locations in Norway and Sweden. The company sells its products through sales offices in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, the UK, Germany, and China.
The product portfolio of Moelven Group includes wood products for home, timber for industry, glulam products, building modules and flexible office solutions, as well as woodchip products and bioenergy solutions. Glommen Mjøsen Skog SA and Viken Skog SA, cooperatives owned by forest owners from Eastern Norway, own 66.8% and 32.8% shares in the company, respectively.
14. Tolko Industries Ltd
Production Volume in 2021: 2,1291,000 m³
Tolko Industries Ltd is a leading manufacturer of forest products based in Vernon, Canada. With a history dating back to 1955, the family-owned company has 2,700 employees and 15 manufacturing locations across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Tolko Industries Ltd produced 2.10 million cubic meters of Lumber, 338 thousand cubic meters of Plywood, and 1.6 million cubic meters of Oriented Strand Board, during 2021. In July 2022, the Board of Directors of Southeastern Timber Products LLC, a joint venture between the Tolko Industries and STP Holdings, announced a $150 million investment in the STP lumber mill in Ackerman, Mississippi. The investment will upgrade the mill from 120 million board feet to 250 million board feet annual capacity.
13. Pfeifer Group
Production Volume in 2021: 2,2001,000 m³
Imst, Austria-based Pfeifer Group is among the leading companies in the European timber industry. Founded in 1948, family-operated Pfeifer Group has over 2,000 employees across 8 locations in Austria, Germany, and the Czech Republic, and serves clients in 90 countries worldwide.
Pfeifer Group manufactures products in the areas of timber construction, concrete formwork, pallet blocks & packaging timber, sawn timber, and energy. The Group produces nearly 2.5 million cubic meters of sawn timber, and 3.3 million cubic meters of solid wood panels, annually, among other products.
12. Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA
Production Volume in 2021: 2,2631,000 m³
Sundsvall, Sweden-based Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA, commonly known as SCA, is Europe’s largest private forest owner and a leading manufacturer of wood products, pulp, packaging paper and renewable energy.
The Wood business of SCA includes five sawmills, wood processing units with planning mills in Sweden. In October this year, the company announced that it had agreed to conduct a feasibility study in partnership with Holmen regarding a potential jointly owned sawmill in Rundvik, Sweden, with high production capacity.
SCA owns 2.6 million hectares of forest in northern Sweden comprising 36% spruce, 40% pine, 15% deciduous and 9% Pinus Contorta. As of 2021, the company had approximately 4,000 employees with annual revenue of approximately SEK 18.8 billion.
The shares of SCA are listed on the NASDAQ Stockholm Stock Exchange and the company currently has a market capitalization of nearly $9.5 billion. Our list also contains several other publicly listed lumber companies such as West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG), Canfor Corporation (OTC:CFPZF), Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY), and Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP).
11. Hampton Lumber
Production Volume in 2021: 2,9031,000 m³
Hampton Lumber is a forest products business based in Portland, Oregon. The family-owned company started in 1942 with a single mill operation and has since grown to own 9 mills and over 1,800 employees. The sawmills owned by the company are located in United States and have a combined annual capacity of 2,495 MMBF.
In April, Hampton Lumber announced that it had completed the acquisition of approximately 18,000 acres of timberland from a fund managed by Campbell Global, LLC in Southwest Washington. Previously, in July 2021, the company had acquired 145,000 acres of timberland from Weyerhaeuser in Northwest Washington.
10. Celulosa Arauco y Constitución
Production Volume in 2021: 3,0001,000 m³
Celulosa Arauco y Constitución, commonly known as ARAUCO, is a leading global forestry company based in Santiago, Chile. The company operates 9 sawmills across Chile, Argentina, and Spain with annual capacity of 3.7 million cubic meters. It also has access to vast forest plantations, including 1.6 million hectares of forest land owned by the company.
ARAUCO offers forest products including MDF, particleboard and HDF, premium plywood, millwork, lumber, and wood pulp. In July this year, the company announced that it had signed a collaboration agreement with the State of Mato Grosso do Sul in Brazil for the construction of a pulp mill in the country. ARAUCO is considering an investment of nearly $3 billion in the country.
Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP) is a global forest products company based in Montreal, Canada. It owns or operates around 40 facilities and power generation assets across the United States and Canada and offers products including market pulp, tissue, wood products and papers. Its products are marketed in over 60 countries.
The Wood Products segment of Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP) comprises of 22 production facilities with 2.9 billion board feet of annual production capacity for construction grade lumber. The company shipped 606 million board feet of wood products during Q3 2022.
On July 6, The Paper Excellence Group announced that it had entered into an agreement to acquire all outstanding shares of Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP) in a transaction representing an enterprise value of $2.7 billion for the company.
Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP) is a well-known brand in the lumber industry, similar to West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG), Canfor Corporation (OTC:CFPZF), and Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY).
8. Georgia-Pacific LLC
Production Volume in 2021: 4,0981,000 m³
Georgia-Pacific LLC, based in Atlanta, Georgia, is among the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of tissue papers and napkins, tableware, paper-based packaging, cellulose, specialty fibers and building products. Founded in 1927, the company employs more than 30,000 people across more than 150 facilities in more than 30 states across the United States. Georgia-Pacific LLC is owned by the Koch Industries, Inc. which acquired the company in a transaction valuing Georgia-Pacific at $21 billion, in December 2005.
Georgia-Pacific LLC is one of the largest wood products manufacturers in North America with 21 manufacturing locations and a product portfolio that ranges from sub-flooring and roof sheathing to exterior sheathing and lumber. The company announced in September last year that it plans to modernize one of its sawmills in Pineland, Texas lumber complex with a $120 million investment.
7. Interfor Corporation (TSE:IFP)
Production Volume in 2021: 4,6391,000 m³
Burnaby, British Columbia-based Interfor Corporation (TSE:IFP) is one of the largest lumber companies in the world with operations across North America and customers around the globe. The company operates 30 manufacturing facilities across North America with an annual lumber production capacity of 5 billion board feet.
The shares of Interfor Corporation (TSE:IFP) are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the company currently has a market capitalization of $1.0 billion. On November 3, the company released its financial and operational results for Q3 2022. It produced 986 million board feet and shipped 1.1 billion board feet of lumber during the quarter.
On October 3, Interfor Corporation (TSE:IFP) announced that it had agreed to acquire Chaleur Forest Products, for a purchase price of C$325 million. The acquisition includes two sawmills located in New Brunswick with combined annual lumber production capacity of 350 million board feet.
Similar to West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (NYSE:WFG), Canfor Corporation (OTC:CFPZF), Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY), and Resolute Forest Products Inc (NYSE:RFP), Interfor Corporation is also a publicly listed company.
6. Binderholz
Production Volume in 2021: 4,8301,000 m³
Fügen, Austria-based Binderholz Group is the largest sawmill and solid wood processing company in Europe with 5,000 employees across 29 locations in Austria, Germany, UK, Latvia, Finland, and USA. The company operates across the whole value chain, from forestry management and timber harvesting, through processing in the sawmills, to solid wood production and mass timber solutions.
Binderholz completed the acquisition of Scotland-based BSW Timber Ltd. in January 2022. BSW Timber Ltd. is the largest sawmill group in UK with a production capacity of 1.2 million cubic meters of sawn timber per year. Post-acquisition, Binderholz will have a cumulative annual turnover of €2.6 billion.
