Raute, the Finnish plywood and LVL machinery supplier, had a record order book in 2018. This reflects the significant demand and high prices in the plywood market two years ago. In 2019, demand stabilized both in plywood and plywood machinery. 2020 will be a tough year for several reasons. Plywood production capacity has peaked, the economic cycle is downwards and, on top of that, the Corona virus is wearing the market out.

In 2019, Raute signed a 56 million euro deal with Segezha from Russia. As Raute’s largest deal ever, that was last year’s rainmaker. The current order book will be delivered during 2020 and 2021. In recent years, the investments to the Russian plywood industry have been substantial. The same speed is unlikely to continue. Chinese modernisation projects might be a new chance for Raute in the future.