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Vietnam’s wood pellet export value increased 34 times in 10 years

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In the past 10 years (2013 – 2022), Vietnam’s wood pellet export volume increased 28 times and the export value increased 34 times.

The above information was provided in a report conducted by Forest Trends in collaboration with the Vietnam Timber and Forest Products Association and the Binh Dinh Timber and Forest Products Association. Accordingly, Vietnam has become the second largest wood pellet producer and exporter in the world, after the US.

In 2022, Vietnam exported 4.9 million tons of wood pellets, reaching a turnover of 0.79 billion USD. In the first 5 months of 2023, wood pellet exports reached 1.57 million tons, with a turnover of about 256.5 million USD.

South Korea and Japan are the two largest wood pellet importers of Vietnam. The volume and export turnover of this item to Korea and Japan accounted for 97% of the total volume and export value from Vietnam to all markets in 2022.

In the first 6 months of 2023, the volume of wood pellets exported from Vietnam to Korea reached about 0.8 million tons. It is expected that by the end of 2023, the volume of wood pellets exported from Vietnam to this market will reach about 1 – 1.5 million tons. Vietnam is the main supplier of wood pellets to Korea (supplying 80% of the total demand of this market).

The first months of 2023 witnessed a very large price fluctuation for Vietnamese wood pellets exported to Korea. At the beginning of the year, the price of wood pellets exported from Vietnam to Korea and Japan fluctuated around 140 USD/ton (FOB Vietnam), then increased sharply, reaching 180-190 USD/ton and then gradually decreased. In June 2023, the export price of wood pellets to South Korea was only about 110 USD/ton while the export price to Japan was 145 – 165 USD/ton. This caused some Vietnamese wood pellet enterprises, especially small enterprises without financial potential, to stop production.

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According to Forest Trends experts, the Japanese market is much more stable than South Korea, with long-term orders (purchase and sale contracts are usually 10 – 15 years) currently exported at prices ranging from about 145 – 165 USD/ton (FOB Vietnam). In addition to long-term contracts, some Japanese enterprises also have short-term contracts with some Vietnamese suppliers.

To date, Vietnam has exported about 1 million tons of wood pellets to Japan. The entire amount of wood pellets exported to Japan requires FSC certification. Raw materials for wood pellets exported to Japan come from domestically grown forest wood, mainly from acacia trees.

Note: The information in this article is for reference only and may change depending on the manufacturer and source of raw materials. For the most accurate information, you should consult experts, wood pellet suppliers or contact Overc.vn to answer your questions and problems related to wood pellets and wood chips.

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  • Overc Team synthesise, analyse and write articles.

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