Estonia faces shortage of dry firewood as prices, electricity costs rise

Estonia is experiencing a shortage of dry firewood, with sellers reporting that stocks have largely run out.

Forestry workers say that the mild winters of recent years have discouraged them from preparing dried logs, leaving buyers to rely on raw timber, Caliber.Az reports via Estonian media.

Near Kuusalu, the owner of a local sawmill collects logging residues from nearby forests to produce wood chips. He has around twenty regular customers.

However, when asked for dry firewood, he has none available, largely because locals prefer to harvest and dry their own supplies rather than searching for extra stock mid-winter.

“At the moment, we only have raw wood; we don’t have any dry stock left. We didn’t even prepare dried logs this year. In previous years, the demand for dry wood was so low that we focused more on selling raw timber,” said Taavi Rada, owner of Hirvli Sawmill.

Local firewood producer Tarmo Kamm has been cutting firewood for over 30 years. He manages seven and a half hectares of his own forest and also buys timber from state forests, with prices rising by one to two euros each year.

Kamm has dry wood, but it is primarily reserved for his own use and for family. Despite this, strangers have occasionally arrived at his property asking to buy logs.

“Many people have come by, asking if I’m selling wood. When I give a price, they don’t want to buy. Dry wood is expensive,” he said.

Online listings show prices ranging from €75 to €80 per cubic metre. High electricity costs this year have also discouraged cutting and splitting firewood.

“It’s very difficult. Electricity is so expensive at the moment that it doesn’t make sense to cut and split using electric tools. I can saw with a chainsaw in advance, but splitting still requires electricity. A four-kilowatt motor uses a lot,” Kamm explained.

By Aghakazim Guliyev