OREANDA-NEWS. December 22, 2009. The offer on temporary cancelling of damp deciduouses export customs duties is sent to the address of the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia from the Government of Karelia. The draft of the official letter was prepared by the Ministry of Economic Development of the republic at the support of the Ministry of Forestry and the Union Timber Merchants and Timber Exporters of Karelia.

Reasonability of updating the raw timber export customs duties was brought up for discussion by the Prime Minister of the Government of Russia Vladimir Putin during the Third the Finnish-Russian forest summit held in October in St.-Petersburg. Ministry of Economic Development of Russia has forwarded corresponding assignments to regions to develop offers on this issue.

The letter sent to the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia of Russia, in particular, says that logging enterprises of forest industry of the republic today face complex financial situation. Having been confronted by difficulties in sales of finished product in the context of growth of the customs duties and falling of demand for forest products, they are forced to reduce volumes of timber cuttings on allotments with prevalence of deciduous wood, to change logging disposition constantly which demands additional expenses including road construction.

Resources of deciduous wood (birches and aspens in Karelia make about of 30% of allowable cut) make about 3,0 million cubic metres including about 2,6 million cubic metres of birch. In recent years the entire volume of birch balances logged in the republic was sold for export, as demand for the specified commodity group in the home market is limited.

Therefore, Government of the Republic of Karelia in view of the situation offers to cancel damp deciduouses export customs duties temporarily (til introduction of large capacities processing crude deciduous wood) and to keep rough coniferous timber products' export customs duties at the level of 2008.