Austria’s Holzindustrie Schweighofer Buys Former Swedwood Plant N Romania

Austrian company Holzindustrie Schweighofer bought the wood processing unit in Siret, northern Romania, previously owned by Swedwood, the production unit of Swedish home-furnishing giant IKEA.
The transaction will be completed this spring, after all authorizations are obtained, according to a press release of Holzindustrie Schweighofer.

“The production unit of Swedwood matches perfectly with our new sawmill in Radauti, which is only 12km away from Siret,” the new owner, Gerald Schweighofer, stated Monday.

The equipment of the Siret plant will be adjusted for the needs of Holzindustrie Schweighofer, which plans to manufacture glued timber products in an annual range up to 60.000 square meters. The company plans to hire approximately 200 people in 2009.

IKEA’s manufacturing unit Swedwood ceased production at its furniture plant in Siret in September due to the 38 million lei (EUR1=RON4.2127) losses reported in the last two years on the backdrop of a 50% hike in wood price, and a high competition on the raw material market, among others.

Holzindustrie Schweighofer invested over EUR115 million in a timber plant and another EUR5 million in a three-star hotel, both in Radauti town, northern Romania.

The company also plans to build a cogeneration plant with a total capacity of 20 MW, using tree bark as fuel.