Segezha Lifts Plywood Output 7.5% and Exports 8%, Eyes South Korea With Tanker Plywood

Summary: Segezha Group (Сегежа Групп) boosted plywood production 7.5% year on year to 271,000 cubic meters in 2024 from 252,000 cubic meters in 2023 and raised plywood exports 8% to 169,000 cubic meters, the timber industry holding told Interfax on March 13, 2025. The most profitable product line remains LNG tanker plywood, supplied to China, with deliveries planned to South Korea after a memorandum of long-term cooperation signed at the beginning of 2025.

Production: two mills, two growth stories

The group's main plywood producer, Vyatka Plywood Mill (VPM), produced more than 183,000 cubic meters in 2024, which corresponds to the production volumes recorded before 2022 and exceeds the 2023 figure by 5.8%. During 2024 VPM launched automatic format edging and woodworking centers with numerical control for additional processing of plywood boards, which the company says renders it possible to fulfill more complex special orders. The second growth engine is younger: Galich Plywood Mill, commissioned at the end of 2022, ramped up plywood production 44% year on year to 88,000 cubic meters in 2024.

Exports and the tanker plywood niche

Segezha boosted the volume of plywood exports 8% year on year to 169,000 cubic meters in 2024 from 156,000 cubic meters in 2023. The company said the most profitable type of product remains LNG tanker plywood, used to manufacture insulating layers of membrane systems in LNG tankers and supplied to China. Deliveries of the product are also planned to South Korea: Segezha signed a memorandum of long-term cooperation with one of South Korea's large companies at the beginning of 2025, opening a second market for the highest-margin grade in its plywood portfolio.

Plans for 2025

An increase in total plywood production volume across the group's mills.
Growth in the production of tanker plywood by 1.5-fold compared with 2024.
Further development of special orders on the new automatic format edging and CNC woodworking lines at Vyatka Plywood Mill.
First deliveries of LNG tanker plywood to South Korea under the memorandum of long-term cooperation.

Contact

Segezha Group (Сегежа Групп), Moscow, Russia. Media and investor relations enquiries are handled through the corporate website https://segezha-group.com.