El Centro de Investigación Forestal Internacional (CIFOR), con sede en Indonesia, alertó hoy del alto riesgo financiero y medioambiental que supone la inversión en nuevas fábricas de celulosa de papel en países en desarrollo. En un estudio financiado por la Unión Europea (UE), CIFOR expone la reciente ‘guerra del papel’ entre Uruguay y Argentina por la construcción de dos grandes plantas de celulosa para señalar la ausencia generalizada de información en este ámbito.

El estudio del Centro de Investigación Forestal Internacional analiza el efecto de 67 plantas en todo el mundo. Reveló que se perdería mucho dinero por no conocer el impacto ambiental. Cuestiona estudios de factibilidad de las entidades crediticias. Más allá de los riesgos ambientales, de no modificar los actuales parámetros de control, las plantas de pasta de celulosa encabezarán el ranking de empresas de alto riesgo financiero. El pronóstico, que suena como una fuerte advertencia para quienes inviertan en el sector, surge de un estudio hecho por el Centro de Investigación Forestal Internacional (Cifor), con base en Indonesia.

The story also appeared in El Once Digital (Argentina), Diario El Argentino, La Nacion, El Herardo, El Comercio Online, La Voz 9.01 Mhz

The rapidly expanding world pulp mill industry could be poised for collapse due to a failure by financial institutions to research how wood is going to be found to feed new mills, the Indonesian-based Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) said in a report. It said false assumptions about the origins and cost of wood used in emerging market mills has led investors to channel billions of dollars into financially risky and environmentally destructive ventures.

The story also appeared in Finance 24 (South Africa), Business Day (Thailand) and ABC News Online (Australia)

A shortage of wood to fuel growing demand from pulp and paper mills worldwide is forcing some companies to tap illegal sources while others are clear-cutting tropical forests, a leading conservation group charged Thursday. In an eight-year study, the Indonesia-based Center for International Forestry Research, or CIFOR, also found that international investors have sunk US$40 billion (euro31.3 billion) worldwide into "financially risky and environmentally destructive" projects with little concern for their sustainability.

The story also appeared in The Jakarta Post, The Manila Times and ABS-CBNNEWS, The Standard

China’s huge appetite for paper is fueling pulp mill expansions and accelerating the loss of forests in countries such as Indonesia, a global research institute said on Thursday. David Kaimowitz, director general for the Center for International Forestry Research, told Reuters large pulp mills were being built without lenders such as the World Bank checking that the proposed mills had enough raw material.

The story also appeared in Reuters India and The Epoch Times, Yahoo! Asia News, Independent Online, The New Zealand Herald, The Malaysia Star

A shortage of wood to fuel growing demand from pulp and paper mills worldwide is forcing some companies to tap illegal sources while others are clear-cutting tropical forests, a leading conservation group charged Thursday. In an eight-year study, the Indonesia-based Center for International Forestry Research, or CIFOR, also found that international investors have sunk US$40 billion (euro31.3 billion) worldwide into "financially risky and environmentally destructive" projects with little concern for their sustainability.

The story also appeared in Reuters, The Manila Times, The Jakarta Post

Investors and lenders are failing to properly assess the financial risks behind pulp mill projects around the globe, setting the stage for a possible repeat of the $14bn Asia Pulp & Paper debacle that affected financial institutions worldwide, according to a new study. The results of the study released today by researchers at the Indonesia-based Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), one of the world’s leading forestry research centres, come amid a major expansion in capacity in the pulp and paper industry.

The story also appeared in The Australian

The rapidly expanding world pulp mill industry could be poised for collapse due to a failure by financial institutions to research how wood is going to be found to feed new mills, a report said. The report by the Indonesian-based Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) said that false assumptions about the origins and cost of wood used in emerging market mills has led investors to channel billions of dollars into financially risky and environmentally destructive ventures.

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