New Forest Survey Shows Higher Standing Volume and Higher Growth in SCA's Forests

STOCKHOLM, Jan. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- SCA has performed a new forest survey in 2019. According to the new survey, SCA's standing timber volume is 11 million cubic metres (m³fo ¹) higher than previously estimated. The survey also shows that the annual growth is 1 million cubic metres higher than the previous estimate.

"We manage our forests for the long term and for high growth, which this new survey confirms", says CEO Ulf Larsson. "A higher standing timber volume means that our forest resource has a higher value. A higher growth gives a higher yield over the long term and also means that our forests bring an increasing contribution to combatting climate change."

According to the new survey, SCA's standing volume in Sweden is estimated at 249 million m³fo as of December 31, 2019. This compares with the previous survey from 2012-2013 and which indicated standing volume of 238 million m³fo at the end of 2019. Of the 11 million m³fo increase, about 6 million m³fo is related to higher than expected growth during the period between surveys (six years) and about 5 million m³fo is related to improved data measurement compared with the previous survey.

The annual gross growth in Sweden amounted to approximately 10.5 million m³fo, 1 million m³fo higher than the estimate in the previous survey of about 9.5 million m³fo. Net growth amounted to approximately 4.0 million m³fo, compared with the previously estimated net growth of about 3.0 million m³fo.

Based on the new forest survey, a new harvesting plan is being undertaken and is expected to be completed in the first half of 2020.

Together with 3 million m³fo of forest in the Baltic states, SCA's total standing volume amounts to 252 million m³fo.

¹ Forest cubic metres, m³fo, is a measure of the volume of wood in living trees based on  the tree trunk, including bark and the tree-top, but excluding branches and needles.

Please note:

This is information that SCA is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, on January 30, 2020 at 07:55 a.m. CET.

Björn Lyngfelt, Vice President, Communications, +46-(0)60-19-34-98

For further information, please contact:
Toby Lawton
CFO
tel. +46-(0)60-19-31-09

Andreas Ewertz
Investor Relations Director
tel +46-(0)60-19-31-97

Björn Lyngfelt
SVP Communications
tel. +46-(0)60-19-34-98

The core of SCA's business is the forest, Europe's largest private forest holding. Around this unique resource, we have built a well-developed value chain based on renewable raw material from our own and others' forests. We offer paper for packaging and print, pulp, wood products, renewable energy, services for forest owners and efficient transport solutions. 2019 the forest products company SCA had approximately 4,000 employees and sales amounted to approximately SEK 19.6 bn (EUR 1.9 bn). SCA was founded in 1929 and has its headquarters in Sundsvall, Sweden. For more information, visit www.sca.com 

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SOURCE SCA