Allied Timbers targets regional projects, higher value addition

ZIMBABWE’S giant timber producer and distributor, Allied Timbers Zimbabwe Private Limited, is targeting to tap into more lucrative supplies within southern Africa and beyond while scaling up value addition to widen its range of products to meet growing customer needs.

With 10 estates, Allied Timbers has the largest timber resource base, constituting about 60 percent of commercial timber plantations in the country with an employment base of about 1 473 workers.

The company is one of Zimbabwe’s top exporters and last week it participated at the 2023 Global Expo Botswana in Gaborone, where it showcased different products as part of efforts to grow the market and contribute to generating foreign currency earnings for the country.

“We should be able to supply the whole of the southern region and beyond. There are quite a number of electricity transmission projects and rural electrification is a big issue, which increases demand for poles,” said Talkmore Kanda, sales and marketing executive in a recent interview in Gaborone.

“We already have pole supplies into the region in countries such as Zambia and pine to South Africa for those in the construction and furniture sectors.

“We intend to move to Malawi and we have secured good leads there. We have also supplied the DRC with electric poles and pine to the Mozambican Central region while Maputo has also shown interest.”

In order to move volumes to Mozambique, he said there was a need for the Government to spruce up the road leading to Sango Border Post to enhance trade efficiency.

“We have been to this market (Botswana) for the past 20 to 30 years supplying timber poles. We have come to ensure our market presence and strengthen relations with our business partners,” said Mr Kanda.

“In doing this, we are cognisant of the need for our products to be value-added so as to widen our product range. We are already doing brandering, finger-jointing, and producing timber doors to create winder value for our customers.

“Value addition also entails producing timber chips, which can be exported overseas to produce paper and other uses including warming buildings, especially in Europe.”

Kanda said his company was conscious of the environmental sustainability obligations and fully involved in programmes that ensure sustainable harvesting of timber and planting of new trees while contributing to the reduction of harmful emissions.

To achieve this, Allied Timbers has documented and implemented an Environmental Policy to show its commitment to pollution prevention, continuous improvement of the Environmental Management System and commitment to applicable environmental legislation and other requirements, which are aimed at satisfying the expectations of key stakeholders.

Allied Timbers Zimbabwe (Private) Limited was born out of the Commercial Division of Zimbabwe’s Forestry Commission, the regulatory authority on gazetted forest land on October 2007.

In December last year, following the company’s positive financial performance, Allied Timbers paid a cash dividend of ZWL$42 675 016.80 to its shareholder, the Government through the then Ministry of Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry.-ebusinessweekly