Binderholz purchase marks one of Kuhmo’s biggest events, city chair says

The sale of sawmill company Kuhmo Oy to Austrian Binderholz is one of the biggest events in the history of Kuhmo, the city’s chair of the city board, Heikki Huotari, told Yle.

Binderholz announced the acquisition on Monday. The entire share capital of Kuhmo Oy will be sold to Binder Beteiligungs AG, part of the Binderholz group. The Austrian company will also acquire all shares in property company Juntinsalo Oy.

Huotari said the sale represents a major change because the sawmill has been locally and Finnish-owned.

He also described the deal as a significant opportunity for development, expansion and new investment, citing Kuhmo’s strong conditions for the sawmill industry.

“Now that an operator of this scale has bought Kuhmo Oy, I believe there is enormous potential. The company is close to its raw materials, and the sawmill is highly modern,” Huotari said.

Huotari said it was still impossible to assess how the acquisition would change the situation in Kuhmo. The city is seeking to arrange a meeting with Binderholz’s management as soon as possible.

He said the meeting would not be an emergency session but a constructive cooperation meeting.

Binderholz expanded in Finland in 2016

Binderholz is an Austrian wood processing group with more than 60 years of history. It operates in Austria and Germany, as well as in Finland through Binderholz Nordic Oy.

The group bought the entire share capital of Vapo Timber Oy, its operations in Lieksa and its sawmills in Nurmes in 2016. In 2017, it acquired a glulam and planing line in Lieksa, expanding its operations into further processing.

Binderholz has its own wood procurement unit in North Karelia and Savo.