KLAIPĖDA, Lithuania, Feb. 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- VMG Lignum Construction, the first sustainable construction factory of its kind in the Baltics and only the third in Europe, has begun operations with plans to produce €150 million of products a year for Scandinavia, North America, Australia, and major European markets.

The €100 million facility for structural engineering timber materials is located in the Akmenė Free Economic Zone. VMG Group, one of the largest wood processing and furniture manufacturing groups in Central and Eastern Europe, opened the site together with Hanner, the leader in real estate development in Lithuania, and the Baltic Industrial Fund II, which is managed by BRAITIN.

The VMG Lignum Construction factory has the annual capacity to produce 120,000 cubic meters of laminated veneer lumber (LVL), 15 million meters of I-joists and 200,000 cubic meters of structural particle boards.

"This product range is unique in global terms as a combination of engineered timber materials for construction that utilizes wood biomass with maximum efficiency. It should ensure top standards of sustainability and enable faster growth of the green ConTech industry," says Sigitas Paulauskas, VMG Group's sole shareholder and investor.  

He says the factory will supply local and global markets with engineered timber products and building solutions. It will thereby enable faster development of sustainable and climate-friendly work on both new construction and panelised serial renovation projects.

In a later phase of development, that range on offer will be enlarged to include other sustainable building structures, such as prefabricated wall and ceiling panels, glued LVL columns, and wall chipboard with decorative sheeting.

Timber construction is identified as one of the top priorities of the new European Green Deal. Under the New European Bauhaus initiative backed by the European Commission and EU member countries, timber structures will be used more widely for new build and renovation projects. As new regulations aim to minimize climate impact, the building industry is facing new challenges to reduce carbon emissions. Engineered timber products are helping to tackle that issue, while also creating new opportunities to save energy and boost stagnating efficiency.

According to Global Wood Markets Info (GWMI), the European market for mass timber-based multi-storey buildings is growing at a pace of roughly 8% a year.

About VMG Group

VMG Group unites 20 companies with more than 3,000 employees and exports to more than 30 countries. The group is currently developing large-scale projects within one of Lithuania's free economic zones involving €500 million of total investments.

The €100 million construction materials factory is the VMG Group's third industrial project in the Akmene FEZ. In 2020, it opened one of the largest chipboard factories in Europe, investing €150 million in the site. In August 2023, it launched a new cabinet furniture factory. Investments in that project exceeded €80 million.

Contacts for media: Gerda Šešplaukytė, gerda.sesplaukyte@vmg.eu