Comment | 3
WBPI – the voice of the global panel industry I
n this issue of WBPI we take our annual detailed look at
the OSB industry globally. One thing is for sure, that
despite the key construction market not being great since mid-2022, there are plenty of OSB plant investment projects taking shape around the world, with some of these
in the form of hybrid panel plants in the Asia region. The key North America region is seeing economic forecasters expecting mortgage interest rates to continue falling from the Autumn 2023 peak. Lower interest rates may improve demand for new homes enough to keep 2024 Canadian and US starts around 2023 levels. OSB demand and market prices likely would stay about the same. There will obviously be substantial incremental supply from four new mills in Alabama, Maine, Mississippi, and Texas, as well as reopenings of Alberta and Texas mills after severe fires. OSB market prices in NA throughout all of 2023 remained below what prevailed from summer 2020 to summer 2022. The market price for benchmark Southeastern 7/16in (11mm) OSB regularly exceeded US$1,000 per m3
during the Pandemic, and OSB
makers generated record profits. However, 2023 prices were higher than what prevailed prior to 2020 when the price was often below US$200 per m3
.
In Europe, Swiss Krono is continuing with ramping up its existing OSB mill outputs and it has also targeted a new greenfield site in southern France. In addition, there has been some movement on product price increases in Europe. So, despite the headlines and less than ideal
❯ FOCUS ON MDF: PART 1 An update on MDF developments in Europe and North America
❯ SURFACING A look at the world of surfacing
❯ RECYCLED WOOD USE We examine trends and technologies in the use of recycled wood and other waste materials
❯ PLUS REGULARS Including all the news relevant to our industry, which will be covered in depth and will also appear, as it happens, on our website:
www.wbpionline.com
Stephen Powney
www.wbpionline.com
GROUP EDITOR
housebuilding rates in several countries, there are some reasons to be looking forward more optimistically, particularly when given the tremendous advantages wood-based panels have in the green building agenda.
Elsewhere in this issue we preview Xylexpo, the biennial technology show in Milan. Exhibitor numbers are down compared to some of the bumper years we have seen in Milan in the past, with Italian woodworking machinery currently taking a real hit in order levels. But some leading panel machinery specialists will be in attendance, such as IMAL PAL Group, Biele and Siempelkamp. The event is always useful to catch up on market dynamics, new investment projects and innovations in production technology. We will be reporting on show developments and news in the next issue of WBPI.
Also, in this issue we have our Focus on Resins, with specific reference to BASF, Chimar Hellas and NTL Consulting, with an emphasis on sustainability in resin supply. BASF’s stepwise approach is an interesting method of giving panel manufacturers alternative options with the same performance levels, but without having to commit to whole new eco resins. We will be talking to other resin specialists in the months to come.
www.wbpionline.com | April/May 2024 | WBPI
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