Nearly 37 million tons of wood dry-matter were consumed in 2022
According to wood flow statistics from the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke), a total of 36.8 million tonnes of wood were used in 2022, measured as wood dry matter. Of this amount, 39 per cent was used in forest industry products, and 60 per cent was burned for energy.
The percentage of dry matter consumed as energy has increased since the 2000s as Finland has moved away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy sources.
“One-fifth of the wood harvested from domestic forests was used directly for energy. When other wood such as the forest industry by-products used in energy production are added to this volume, a total of 60 per cent of the dry wood matter is burned,” says Tuomas Niinistö, Senior Statistician at Luke.
In 2022, the share of dry wood matter ultimately burned for energy increased by one percentage point compared to the previous year. This trend resulted from the fact that the use of forest chips in heating and power plants reached record levels at the same time as the use of wood in the forest industry declined.
Sixty-two per cent of the dry matter burned for energy consisted of various forest industry by-products
Of the 21.9 million tonnes of dry wood matter consumed in energy generation, the vast majority consists of various forest industry by-products that are burned in heating and power plants. The black liquor generated in the pulping process accounts for 41 per cent, and solid industrial by-products, such as bark, for 21 per cent of the total. Of all dry matter burned for energy, the share of forest chips burned by heating and power plants was about one-fifth.
Single-family homes also burn significant amounts of wood. This small-scale wood burning consists mostly of wood that comes directly from the forest, such as logs and other firewood. In 2022, it accounted for 14 per cent of the dry matter used in energy production.
The share of dry wood matter that ends up as paper continues to decrease
In 2022, a total of 14.4 million tonnes of wood dry wood matter tied up in forest industry products. This was ten per cent less than in the previous year. Especially in the pulp industry, production fell as a combined effect of the economic downturn and industrial actions early in the year.
“In recent decades, structural changes in forest industry production have had a major impact on how wood is used in Finland. Paper production volumes have fallen, and in 2022, the amount of dry wood matter used in them fell to less than a third of what it was in the early 2000s. In total, only 15 per cent of the dry matter used in forest industry products in Finland ended up as paper,” Niinistö says.
Similarly, paperboard production volumes have been increasing in recent years. In 2022, 24 per cent of the dry matter in forest industry products was used in paperboard.
Sawn wood and various wood-based panels accounted for 36 per cent of the dry matter of forest industry products. This share increased by two percentage points from the previous year and was last higher in 2005 when it reached 37 per cent.
Most of the wood dry matter tied up in forest industry products ends up to export
Out of the dry wood matter used in Finland, 14.2 million tonnes ended up abroad, of which 13.2 million tonnes were forest industry products, and the rest were roundwood and various wood residues. Paper, paperboard, and related products accounted for 42 per cent of forest industry exports, while sawn goods and wood-based panels accounted for 30 per cent. Wood pulp, which is mostly processed into paper and paperboard products abroad, accounted for 28 per cent of dry matter exports.
As a result of the closure of the eastern border, roundwood imports fell to 2.5 million tonnes of dry matter. In addition, one million tonnes of dry matter were imported into Finland as various forest industry products.
Mass balance converts wood and forest industry products into a single unit of measurement
The use and mass balances of wood flow statistics represent the supply of wood and forest industry products from different sources and the flow of wood material from raw materials to products and energy generation. The mass balance converts wood and forest industry products into a standard unit of measurement, a dry-matter tonne of wood. This makes it possible to present material flows that cover the entire forestry sector using a single unit of measurement. The mass balance tracks the flow of dry wood matter into various forest industry products, fuels and waste. On the other hand, the use balance describes the supply and use of wood in the more traditional units of measurement used in forest statistics, i.e. in solid cubic metres and tonnes.
