OREANDA-NEWS. April 21, 2011. Belarusian forestry companies plan to increase capital investments 25% on the year in 2011 to 255 billion Belarusian rubles (Br), Forestry Minister Mikhail Amelyanovich told reporters.

In the first quarter of 2011, forestry companies invested 50 billion rubles in fixed assets, up from the target of 32 billion rubles.

“We project foreign investments at USD 22 million this year,” Amelyanovich said, adding that foreign capital would be spent on Austrian forest machines – harvesters and forwarders.

Most of the investments are in forest farms and forest harvesting operations, he said.

The ministry plans to engage entrepreneurs in the development of the forestry sector by 2015.

Furthermore, the minister noted that each Belarusian region would have its own production of wood fuel.