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THE MILL
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Sortavala Timber Mill was founded in 2013 on the site of a former sawmilling workshop belonging to a company that had gone bankrupt. At that time, the mill had a single sawmilling section, no kiln-drying complex and no timber resource base of its own.

Sawn timber was sorted manually, increasing the amount of heavy physical labour and reducing overall productivity. Around 60 people worked at the mill across one or two shifts.

The mill produced only green sawn timber. This product had a limited storage life, so sales were largely confined to the nearest markets—Finland and Estonia. Even in the early years, it became clear that the company needed a different production model to operate sustainably.

The first years of operation revealed two key areas of dependency. The mill lacked its own timber resource base, while the production of green sawn timber alone limited both the geographic reach of deliveries and opportunities for further growth.

In 2015, two long-term development priorities were established. The first was to build a reliable timber resource base capable of ensuring a stable supply of raw material to the mill.

The second was systematic modernisation: the construction of a kiln-drying complex, the development of sorting operations, the generation of heat on site and the utilisation of sawmilling residues. These decisions laid the foundation for the mill’s future as a fully integrated production enterprise.

In 2017, the first major stage of modernisation was completed. The mill built its first four drying kilns, its first wood-residue-fired boiler plant, a dry-timber sorting line and a finished-product warehouse.

The new boiler plant was commissioned on 13 October, and the first batch of kiln-dried sawn timber was produced on 26 October. This enabled the company to supply more distant markets and offer customers a finished product rather than an intermediate one.

In October of the same year, Sortavala Timber Mill acquired a 75.07% stake in Zapkarelles JSC, one of Karelia’s largest timber-harvesting companies. This enabled the mill to meet its raw-material requirements entirely from its own resource base and establish an integrated production chain—from timber harvesting to the production of kiln-dried sawn timber.

The next stage focused on increasing production capacity and reducing the amount of manual labour. The mill modernised the sawmill equipment control system, installed an automated green-timber sorting line, expanded the kiln-drying complex and commissioned a new boiler plant.

The systematic upgrading of equipment improved sorting accuracy, production process stability and the quality of finished products.

By the end of this stage, annual sawn timber output had approached 90,000 m³—approximately three times the initial level. A small sawmilling workshop had developed into one of Karelia’s largest wood-processing enterprises.

Before 2022, most of the mill’s products were supplied to Europe, which accounted for more than 80% of the company’s sales. Changes in external conditions required the established geography of supply to be completely reconsidered within a short period.

From June 2022, the team began developing new routes and redirecting exports to China, Egypt, South Korea and other markets across Asia and the Middle East. The company adapted its logistics, container shipments and customer relations to the new operating environment.

Despite this challenging period, the mill maintained production and retained its workforce. Overcoming this stage was the result of a collective team effort and demonstrated the resilience of the company.

On 12 April 2023, Sortavala Timber Mill joined the Basalt Investment Group. This marked the beginning of a new stage in the company’s development and brought the group’s Karelian assets together within a single production chain alongside the RK-Grand pulp mill, the timber-harvesting company Zapkarelles JSC and the logistics company L-Trans LLC.

Within this system, each company is responsible for its own area of operation. Zapkarelles JSC provides the timber resource base; Sortavala Timber Mill produces sawn timber and pulp chips; RK-Grand LLC uses pulpwood and chips to produce pulp; and L-Trans LLC provides transport links between the companies and their delivery markets.

The technical development of the mill continued at the same time. In 2023, a new individual log-feeding and alignment system was installed on the sawline. Three new kilns were added to the drying complex, bringing its total simultaneous loading capacity to 2,380 m³.

By 2025, the company had restored its production volumes following the major restructuring of its sales markets and reached a new production milestone. Annual sawn timber output reached 100,000 m³, while sales volumes increased from 84,700 m³ in 2021 to 99,200 m³ in 2025.

The principal supply markets became China, Egypt, Russia and South Korea. To accommodate the growing volumes, additional storage areas were created, a buffer storage facility for pulp chips was established and several areas of the production site were upgraded.

More than RUB 1.1 billion was invested in the development of Sortavala Timber Mill between 2013 and 2025. Development continued in 2026, with the main work focused on modernising the sawmill, improving equipment efficiency and further refining production processes.

The next stage of development is focused on further increasing productivity while maintaining a fully integrated production cycle and the comprehensive utilisation of wood raw material.

The preliminary investment budget is RUB 250 million. The project includes the modernisation of the sawmill and the green- and dry-timber sorting lines, the installation of a timber quality scanner, the expansion of kiln-drying capacity and the upgrading of the mill’s energy infrastructure. The main stage of the work is scheduled for autumn 2027.

The project aims to increase annual finished sawn timber output to 125,000 m³, process all sawlogs harvested by the group’s companies and improve the utilisation of sawmilling by-products.