Swedish businesses invited to venture into Sarawak’s forest plantation and wood-based industries

KUCHING, April 29 — Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan recently held a networking session with Business Sweden, an agency promoting Swedish companies to grow in the global market and for foreign direct investors to expand business in Sweden.

Awang Tengah extended an invitation to the Swedish business community to venture into Sarawak’s forestry, forest plantation and wood-based industries.

He pointed out that Sarawak is moving towards a sustainable and renewable wood-based industry utilising material from forest plantations to produce engineered wood, biomass fuels, pulp and paper.

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“Sarawak has a geographical advantage as it is located near to large market with high growth rate such as China, Japan, India, Korea and Australia,” he said in a press release issued by his office.

Awang Tengah, who is also Minister of International Trade, Industry and Investment, had led a Sarawak delegation on a two-day working visit to Sweden which began last Thursday.

According to the press release, Business Sweden sees potential opportunities to consider in Sarawak in areas like research and innovation, digital application in forest management, forest industries for wood structure constructions, and human capital development.

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It said Business Sweden in collaboration with the industries and agencies will continue to engage in dialogues with Sarawak to identify areas of common interest to be considered and implemented in the future.

Meanwhile, Awang Tengah at the meeting was briefed by the Swedish Forest Agency, Swedish Wood Building Council, Ecco Innovation Foundation, and Swedish pulp and paper manufacturer Billerud on matters pertaining to the development of forest industries in Sweden.

The Deputy Premier and the Sarawak delegation were told about the use of engineered wood to construct timber structures, collaboration by Ecco Innovation Foundation in other countries in Southeast Asia, and pulp and paper industry.

At the same session, Sarawak Planted Forest Sdn Bhd general manager Paul Valentine gave a briefing on the overview development status of planted forest in Sarawak and opportunities for future collaborations and investments for the Swedish business communities.

These opportunities are in digital technology, mechanisation for planted forest harvesting, and production of high value-added products such as pulp, paper, engineered wood and biomass fuel, said the release. — The Borneo Post