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Last year was another year of high seedling deliveries from SCA. Nearly 100 million seedlings were delivered to private forest owners and SCA’s own forests. Source: Timberbiz, Photo: Michael Engman “It feels good to be able to contribute with seedlings of high quality that provide good growth in Sweden’s forests, and thus significant climate benefits,” Thomas Vestman, head of NorrPlant, SCA’s seedling operations said. “It was a good delivery year, despite the prolonged winter. But when summer arrived, it came early in May which put our nurseries in full speed. We see however, that more and more customers choose to plant in August, which has now become our largest delivery month. That’s good, because it’s perfectly fine to plant well into the autumn,” Mr Vestman said. Most of SCA’s seedlings are purchased by private forest owners throughout Sweden. The remaining share, about 40%, is used in SCA’s own forests in both Sweden and the Baltics. The primary tree species that SCA sells is pine, followed by spruce and lodgepole pine. The deliveries of larch seedlings slightly decreased last year. “On the other hand, our deliveries of high-refined seedlings increased, which come from what we call third-generation seed material. These are seedlings that grow even better, up to 25% better, than uncultivated forests. This means that the forest owners get forests that grow better throughout the cycle time,” Mr Vestman explained. “Also, our deliveries of frozen seedlings were high last year. Last year’s initiative to send them directly to customers via shipping companies was successful and continues this year. In fact, we have already sold almost all frozen seedlings for 2025. But if you haven’t bought your seedlings for this year’s plantations yet, we’ll arrange it.” Every fourth seedling comes from SCA Around 400 million seedlings are planted in Sweden every year. SCA’s extensive deliveries mean that almost every fourth seedling planted in Sweden comes from SCA. “I am proud that we have the power to make a difference and contribute to more forest in Sweden. Our seedlings are the engine in SCA’s climate benefits. First, they bind carbon dioxide while they grow, and when harvested eventually, they provide sustainable wood raw material for a variety of products,” Mr Vestman said. In 2024, SCA became part-owner in the SE-technology and the pilot facility developed and operated by SweTree Technologies in Umeå. “With SE-technology, somatic embryogenesis, you can quickly and efficiently produce more seedlings. Just one single seed can give rise to many embryos, which then are cultivated into new seedlings. Getting the best possible plant material is extremely important. It’s about creating forests that grow well and withstand the future climate without damage,” Niklas Borgh, a breeding specialist at NorrPlant said. Last year, SCA also invested in seed extraction. Using an in-house developed kiln and seed separator, SCA can now dry process cones to extract seeds from their own pine plantations. Seed extraction cones – means to make get the cones to open up and release the seeds. It may sound simple but requires a quality-assured working method to avoid damaging the valuable seeds. “We are learning more and more and are gradually increasing the proportion of seed extraction. In this way, we both increase our competence and create winter employment in our otherwise highly seasonal business,” Mr Vestman said. “I look forward to yet another exciting seedling year, where we continue to optimize our production and deliver quality seedlings to the country’s forest owners.”

In a move towards sustainable wind energy, Senvion, one of the key wind turbine OEMs in India, has joined forces with a German wooden wind turbine blade manufacturer, Voodin Blade Technology GmbH to develop and manufacture high-performance wooden wind turbine blades for Senvion’s 4.2 MW wind turbine platform. Source: Timberbiz “We have evaluated Voodin’s technology and see great potential in terms of sustainability and flexibility,” Amit Kansal, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director of Senvion India said. The partnership will begin with a comprehensive feasibility study to evaluate the technical, economic, and environmental potential of wooden turbine blades, followed by the installation and testing of prototype blades. “We are excited to collaborate with Senvion India on this groundbreaking initiative. This partnership allows us to bring our innovative wooden blade technology to a new scale and reinforces our mission to create a more sustainable and recyclable future for the wind energy industry. “Wooden wind turbine blades are not only an innovative technological advancement but also a significant leap toward a more sustainable wind energy ecosystem,” Tom Siekmann, CEO of Voodin Blade Technology GmbH said. Building on Voodin’s success in deploying prototype wooden blades in Germany in 2024, this collaboration sets the stage for a new era of sustainable, high-performance wind energy solutions. Voodin Blade Technology GmbH specializes in creating sustainable wood-based wind turbine blades using LVL to enhance performance and reduce environmental impact. This strategic collaboration represents a major step forward in tackling one of the wind industry’s biggest challenges, blade recyclability, by integrating engineered wood, a renewable and recyclable material, into turbine blade design. In addition to its sustainability benefits, Voodin’s innovative LVL production technology eliminates the need for moulds, significantly reduces manufacturing energy consumption, and ensures consistent quality through advanced automation. This flexible, mould-independent approach allows for seamless scalability and adaptability to meet diverse customer needs while reducing the significant CAPEX associated with traditional blade production. “The strategic alliance between Senvion India and Voodin Blades will transform the future of wind turbine blade production. These companies are innovative, creative and flexible, and will help our path towards achieving a sustainable world forever,” Dr PKC Bose, Co-Founder & Managing Director of ENREGO Energy GmbH, partners of Voodin Blade Technology GmbH said.