The Government of the Russian Federation has approved the Rules for forming and amending the list of state institutions entitled to harvest timber under part 6 of Article 29.1 of the Forest Code. The rules define the process by which state institutions of the subjects of the Russian Federation — forestry enterprises (leshozes) — can obtain the right to harvest timber in mature and overmature stands. Previously, within forest conservation programs such institutions carried out harvesting mainly during sanitary cuts or thinning. The expansion of the harvesting categories creates an additional off-budget source for state forestry enterprises, which can be used to strengthen the material and technical base and raise employees’ wages. The approved rules establish uniform requirements for institutions seeking inclusion in the regional list. To participate in organized auctions, a leshoz must have admission either directly or through a participant acting in its interests, possess qualified specialists and the necessary equipment for harvesting and transporting timber, and have no debts for forest use. Harvesting must be carried out by the institutions themselves, without contractors. Revenues from the sale of timber derived from mature and overmature stands may be directed exclusively to improving the institution’s material and technical state or to forest reproduction.
The rules also provide for a mechanism to exclude an institution from the regional list. Specifically, a institution may be removed for two or more violations of the duty to realize the harvested timber through organized auctions. “The adopted rules form clear and unified criteria for admitting leshozes to harvest mature and overmature timber and at the same time reinforce organized auctions as a transparent mechanism for selling this product. For the Petersburg Exchange, this means an expansion of the organized segment of the market, increased liquidity, and the appearance of additional timber volumes for buyers from various regions. Selling timber through organized auctions enables objective market pricing, ensures transaction traceability, and creates uniform access to raw materials,” noted Alexey Ryzhikov, Senior Managing Director of the Petersburg Exchange. Thus, the new order creates conditions for involving additional timber volumes in the organized turnover and establishes control mechanisms ensuring targeted use of government institution revenues. The post includes links to SPIMEX’s official social media pages: SPIMEX VK page, SPIMEX Dzen page and SPIMEX T-Pulse page.