Forestry analysts say the Chinese government is likely negotiating to buy timber investments on Vancouver Island.
The Wall Street Journal reported November 6 that the Chinese government is preparing to invest about $100 million in timber assets mainly on Vancouver Island.
The business journal said the Chinese government's wealth fund, China Investment Corp., is negotiating with Toronto-based Brookfield Asset Management for a 12.5% stake in Island Timberlands, which owns about 254,000 hectares of forest land.
Hakan Ekstrom, who is president and a forestry analyst at Wood Resources International LLC, told Business in Vancouver November 7 that he believes negotiations are likely.
"China has to go outside the country to import wood chips for making pulp and logs for making lumber and plywood," Ekstrom said.
"They have a fast-growing demand for wood products and pulp and paper in their country and they have a fast growing industry to supply that market but what they don't have is the forest resources to supply those sawmills, plywood mills and pulp mills," he said.
