|
2005/9/22
As a result of trade meetings held in Girdwood Sept. 8 and 9, a $1.7 million contract was signed to export Southeast Alaska timber to Taiwan. The agreement was announced by Alaska economic and resource development officials and Taiwanese executives.
The contract confirms terms agreed to by Sealaska Timber Corp. and Long Haeuser Enterprise Co. of Taiwan. Sealaska Timber is a subsidiary of Sealaska Corp. of Juneau.
The deal was announced on behalf of the state by Alaska Taiwan-Alaska Trade and Investment Cooperative Council co-chairs Frank Roppel and Mike Berry. Announcing the agreement for Taiwan were Taiwanese TATICC co-chairs Sheng-Cheng Hu and Theodore M.H. Huang.
"The contract between these two commercial entities brings their 2005 transactions to a total of $5.2 million," Roppel said.
The agreement calls for Sealaska Timber to sell hemlock, spruce and red cedar logs harvested in the Hydaburg and Tolstoi areas. The logs are scheduled to be shipped from Hydaburg in October.
Signing the agreement for Sealaska was Rosser Stevens, the company's senior vice president for marketing. Chairman Wei-Cheng Chen signed the agreement for Long Haeuser Enterprises.
Roppel is chairman of the Alaska Housing Finance Corp. Berry chairs the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. Hu is chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development, Executive Yuan. Huang chairs the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce.
"This is a win-win agreement for Alaska and Taiwan," said Commissioner of Commerce, Community and Economic Development Bill Noll. "The agreement is good news for a timber community in Southeast Alaska that suffered sometimes deliberate neglect before Gov. Frank Murkowski stood up for this vital industry and his fellow Alaskans."
Representatives of Taiwanese buyers at the Girdwood meeting forecast a 50 percent increase in Alaska timber purchases in 2006. According to the state Department of Commerce, Taiwan imported $4.14 million in Alaska timber products in 2004, up from $3.2 million in 2003.
"We are thankful for the purchases to date and for the 50 percent increase forecast," Noll said. "Nonetheless, we are going to push for that increase to be as high as 200 percent. We feel the opportunity is there, and we are eager to support the Alaska timber industry." |
