Tornator becomes Estonia’s largest private landowner
Tornator Eesti OÜ, a subsidiary of the Finnish forestry company Tornator Oyj, will become Estonia’s largest private landowner. It will purchase some 13,000 hectares of forestland from the Estonian Timberland Fund, which is administered by Northern Star AS, thereby owning a total of more than 40,000 hectares of agricultural and forestry land in Estonia.
“Profitable international growth is an integral part of the Group’s strategy, and it has been a pleasure to watch our Estonian subsidiary evolve from a small startup to one of the nation’s foremost actors in private forestry,” comments Tornator Oyj’s Deputy CEO, CFO Henrik Nieminen.
“Finnish forestry expertise is also an export that we should be proud of,” Nieminen adds.
“Tornator Eesti OÜ has long been a well-known name locally and succeeded in growing profitably year after year. This investment puts us right to the top of the country in forestland area, and we will be able to respond better to the increasing demand for wood,” says Matti Kuusisto, Regional Manager, Baltics.
Tornator Eesti OÜ grows forests and sells wood to local buyers, mainly harvesting companies. It provides work to four local employees and a number of regular contractors. In 2013, Estonian operations generated some EUR 1.5 million in sales. Country Manager in Tallinn is Riido Rosin.
Tornator owns about 600,000 hectares of forestland in Finland, and in Romania the company manages, besides the 12,000 hectares of its own forests, some 18,000 hectares of other owners’ forests.
For further information, please contact:
Tornator Oyj
Henrik Nieminen, Chief Financial Officer, tel. +358 40 869 7613
Matti Kuusisto, Regional Manager, Baltics, tel. +358 40 577 9744
Tornator Eesti OÜ
Riido Rosin, Country Manager, tel. +372 5056 845
Tornator Oyj is the third largest forest owner in Finland with about 600,000 hectares of forestland. In 2013, the Group’s net sales were about EUR 87 million and total balance sheet value about EUR 1.1 billion. Tornator also owns forests and practises forestry in Estonia and Romania. Tornator’s main business is wood production and the sale of cutting rights. The Group employs about 210 people, mainly in Finland.