About the text "Neighbors protect forests and warm themselves with Montenegrin wood" announced the Ministry of Agriculture, stating that they are submitting the answer, which we are publishing in full.
"The superficial and tendentious analysis of official data on the export of wood assortments, with the conclusion of the alleged uncontrolled export of firewood from Montenegro in the last five years, is another in a series of attempts to accuse the Government of Montenegro of non-domestic attitude towards an important resource such as our forests.
Decision
Of course, the facts are different. In the aforementioned text in "Vijesti", the incorrect claim is made that the "Decision on the temporary restriction of the export of certain wood assortments" lasted only five months. The aforementioned decision adopted on 7/4/2017 and with certain amendments is in force continuously and is being applied today. It is scheduled to last until May 1, 2021. We believe that its validity period will be extended even after that.
We have repeatedly informed the public about our commitment to the implementation of this decision and its effects, and we have received confirmation of the achieved results on several occasions from the businessmen themselves. Members of the Committee for Forestry and Wood Industry PKCG have repeatedly emphasized the importance of the successful implementation of this Government decision, which stopped the export of quality raw materials, which made it easier for processors to procure raw materials.
If the author of the text did not want to consult the relevant Ministry regarding the data and their meaning, in order to objectively inform the public, he had at his disposal publicly available studies - from the World Bank and the Investment Framework for the Western Balkans, on heating in that region. In the mentioned documents, which were prepared by independent experts, it is stated that the use of the cutting edge in Montenegro is 41 percent of what is allowed, while in Albania this figure is 146 percent, and in Kosovo it is 156 percent.
About export
The claim that Montenegro exported 32 million euros worth of firewood in five years is also incorrect. Namely, according to the customs regulations, i.e. the regulations on the classification of goods in the customs tariff, firewood is considered: "Tariff number 4401: Firewood in shapes, logs, branches, bundles; wood in the form of chips or similar particles, sawdust, wood waste, briquettes, pellets and similar forms". Therefore, it is clear that in the text, knowingly or unknowingly, the journalist did not deal with the details and structure of exports, which grossly misinformed the public.
It is true that the largest part of the mentioned export was related to the export of pellets, which is a finished product, and not a raw material. We emphasize that out of a total of 32 million euros (which is the value of the five-year export of firewood from Montenegro) - 24,3 million euros or 76% refers to pellets.
In the period from 2017 to 2019, since the Decision on restricting the export of wood assortments came into force, the value of firewood exports from Montenegro was 22,5 million euros, of which 90,8% refers to the export of pellets. It is also important to note that in recent years the share of the pellet category in the total export of firewood has increased significantly. In 2015, that share was 33,2 percent of the total exported firewood, while the share of pellets in 2019 in relation to the total export of products from tariff number 4401 was 99,7%. In 2019, roundwood exports amounted to only 104 thousand euros, which is 58 times less than in 2015 or 41 times less than in 2016.
The growth trend of pellet exports continued in 2020, so as of September, the value of exported pellets amounted to 7,1 million euros, i.e. 30,5 percent more than in the same period last year.
The effects of the implemented measures can be seen most vividly in the graph," the Ministry's response stated.
(The journalist's answer in tomorrow's issue of Vijesti)
Related Articles
Bonus video:
