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| A tree plantation created by Korindo Group in Indonesia. The Korea Forest Service (KFS) has been assisting Korindo and other companies in developing tree farms overseas to meet growing domestic timber demand. / Courtesy of KFS |
By Lee Hyo-sik
Korean companies have been making inroads into Southeast Asia and South America over the years to build tree plantations there to meet growing domestic timber demand.
Korea Forest Service (KFS) has played a crucial role in helping local firms secure sites for tree farms abroad by offering them financial aid and other support. The agency has been active in signing cooperation agreements with its counterparts in dozens of developing countries to enable local businesses to build tree plantations and bring timber produced there back to Korea.
"We import 83 percent of our timber demand," KFS Minister Shin Won-sop said. "Wood prices have been on the rise over the years due to an unstable supply. It has become important for Korea to invest and build tree farms abroad to secure the wood it needs."
Shin said creating plantations helps counter the global warming and generate other environmental benefits. "Thirty local companies have built tree farms in 13 countries spanning a total of 280,000 hectares. We plan to create 100,000 hectares of plantation overseas by 2050 in cooperation with private sector players."
Korindo Group, Eagon Corp. and other timber companies have entered Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, New Zealand, Uruguay and other nations with abundant forest resources.
"An increasing number of local businesses have expressed interest in developing forest resources abroad. The KFS has been holding a series of information sessions and informing them of how we can help them achieve their goals," the minister said. "We have signed a cooperation agreement with Indonesia and 20 other countries rich in forest resources to pave the way for local forest firms to do business there."
For instance, the KFS has persuaded the Indonesian government to allocate 70,000 hectares of forest for Korean companies. The Cambodian government has also agreed to set aside 20,000 hectares of forest for Korea's plantation projects.
"We have extended 23 billion won in low-interest policy loans this year to companies nurturing tree farms in foreign countries," Shin said. "We have also introduced an internship program for young people seeking to pursue a career in the forest development industry. The interns have been working at local firms building plantations in various nations."
From 2009 through 2013, a total of 100 interns participated in the one-year internship program working in 10 countries. After completing the program, most of them found jobs in the forest industry, according to the KFS.
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