Tropical Timber Product Price Trends - Updated September 15, 2009

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Tropical Timber Product Price Trends

Updated September 15, 2009

Note: Y-axis: Price index (Jan 1997=100)

　Tropical Log Price Trends

Tropical Sawnwood Price Trends

Tropical Plywood Price Trends

Source: ITTO' Tropical Timber Market Report

eam heating softwood to temperatures over
200C, driving out moisture and resin to enhance durability
and stability. The modified product is being marketed for
decking, garden furniture and external cladding. Kebony, a
product from Norway is produced by a similar process
except that ‘tropical-wood-colour’ is added to the
candidate softwood by impregnating furfuryl (a byproduct
from sugar making) before being subjected to
intense heating. Other heat treated brands include Plato
Wood and Lignia.

Acetylation, involves the use of naturally occurring acetic
acid to alter the molecular structure of wood. The treated
timber is more durable and stable without any marked
effect on visual appearance. Titan Wood’s Accoya is
probably the most well known brand of this material and is
being marketed for exterior joinery applications,
particularly windows, doors, conservatories and cladding.
Accoya claims a service life of 50 years and a first
maintenance (of paints and coatings) period of 12 years.

At present, the ability of these products to compete with
tropical hardwoods is constrained by price. For example
Kebony is currently priced at between USD4,000 and
USD14,000 per m³ depending on quality, and is therefore
targeted specifically at the high end teak market. However
price levels are expected to come down as capacity
increases. In June 2009, the German trade journal EUWID
reported that European production capacity of thermally
treated wood is now around 160,000 m³, with known
capacity of 80,000 m³ in Scandinavia, 40,000 m³ in
German-speaking countries of central Europe, 30,000 m³
in the Netherlands, and 8,000 m³ in the Baltics. In 2009,
reported projects in Germany and Finland will extend
production by a further 20,000 m³. These figures may not
seem high, but are significant when set against the 600,000
m³ combined annual EU import volume of meranti and
sapele, the EU’s two leading tropical joinery species.

In August, the UK trade journal TTJ reported claims by
Titan Wood that its two largest UK distributors had shown
sales increases of more than 200% in the May to July 2009
period compared with the same period in 2008 –
remarkable growth during a period of generally sluggish
demand. TTJ notes that one of these distributors,
International Timber, puts the growth down to durability
and aesthetic reasons, plus people looking for a sustainable
alternative to tropical hardwood. Titan Wood also reckons
that Accoya has potential to take market share from steel,
PVCu, aluminium and concrete.

In a notable development from the perspective of tropical
hardwood plywood, in June 2009 Titan Wood and Medite
Europe Limited signed a joint development agreement to
commercialise new MDF and OSB panels made from
acetylized ‘Tricoya’ wood elements. By protecting the
OSB from wood rot and significantly improving durability
and dimensional stability, the market development strategy
for acetylized OSB targets external applications currently
occupied by tropical hardwood plywood in Europe.

New European Timber Trade Federation established
A new European Timber Trade Federation (ETTF) was
established on 1 July 2009 to represent trade interests at
European level. The management team of the ETTF is
headed by Andre de Boer of the Netherlands Timber Trade
Association (VVNH). De Boer will combine his role as
CEO of VVNH with his new role as ETTF General
Secretary until the end of this year, after which time he
will dedicate himself to his new tasks as ETTF. Other
positions on the board of ETTF will be held by the
Chairman of the Union pour le commerce des bois durs
(UCBD), Union pour le commerce des panneaux en bois
(UCIP), and Union pour le commerce des bois resineux
(UCBR) which have now merged into the ETTF. The
ETTF membership comprises 12 national importer
associations: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany,
Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain,
Sweden and the UK. The official headquarters of the
ETTF will be in Brussels, Belgium, however de Boer will
coordinate Federation work from Almere in the
Netherlands. A key objective is to ensure more powerful
representation of the interests European wood importers at
EU level, for example in relation to on-going negotiations
surrounding legislative proposals which aim to minimise
the risk of illegal wood entering European supply chains.

Abbreviations

LM Loyale Merchant, a grade of log parcel	Cu.m Cubic Metre
QS Qualite Superieure	Koku 0.278 Cu.m or 120BF
CI Choix Industriel	FFR French Franc
CE Choix Economique	SQ Sawmill Quality
CS Choix Supplimentaire	SSQ Select Sawmill Quality
FOB Free-on-Board	FAS Sawnwood Grade First and
KD Kiln Dry	Second
AD Air Dry	WBP Water and Boil Proof
Boule A Log Sawn Through and Through	MR Moisture Resistant
the boards from one log are bundled	pc per piece
together	ea each
BB/CC Grade B faced and Grade C backed	MBF 1000 Board Feet
Plywood	MDF Medium Density Fibreboard
BF Board Foot	F.CFA CFA Franc
Sq.Ft Square Foot	Price has moved up or down

Source: ITTO' Tropical Timber Market Report