OREANDA-NEWS. March 16, 2011. OJSC Ilim Group received a multi-site FSC Forest Management Certificate, which also applies to the Group’s harvesting operations in Siberia (the Bratsk and Ust-Ilimsk District Branches). This FSC Certificate covers that largest area of certified forest in Russia and the second largest in the world, 3.7 million hectares.

The new Certificate has replaced the two former FSC certificates, previously issued to Ilim Group’s logging companies, LLC  IlimSibLes and ZAO ULiL. At present, LLC  IlimSeverLes, the Group’s harvesting company in Koryazhma, has a separate certificate covering an area of 1.5 million hectares.

This means that the total area of certified forests of OJSC Ilim Group now exceeds 5.1 million hectares. Ilim Group is Russia’s largest company conducting its harvesting operations in accordance with the FSC international forest certification system.

"We at Ilim Group take our environmental obligations seriously. We make every effort to bring the principles of sustainable forestry into practice. FSC certification is a reflection of our environmental commitments," Mr. Paul Herbert, CEO of Ilim Group comments on the receipt of the Certificate. Earlier on, in 2009, Ilim Group received a multi-site Chain of Custody Certificate which covers three of the Company’s Branches: Koryazhma, Bratsk, and Ust-Ilimsk.