Poland has imposed sanctions on a plywood plant in Kazakhstan, because of its possible ties to Russia.
The Ministry of the Interior and Administration of the Republic of Poland has added Limited Liability Partnership Vostochny Plywood Mill (VFK LLP – Товарищество с ограниченной ответственностью «Восточный Фанерный Комбинат») to its sanctions list. The company is located in Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan, and produces birch plywood. Its website states that it employs 140 people.
The company was included on the Polish sanctions list due to possible ties with Russia.
In 2019–2021, there were no cases of imports of birch plywood from Kazakhstan to Poland. Imports to Poland started in 2022 after the imposition of sanctions against Russia. The volume of imports in 2023 and 2024 (up to June 2024 data) increased more than ninefold compared to 2022 and amounted to over 112,000 tons. In May 2024, the European Commission imposed an anti-dumping duty on imports of Russian-origin birch ply from Turkey and Kazakhstan,” said the Ministry.
The Ministry also clarified that, according to the EU, plywood from Turkey and Kazakhstan has the same physical and chemical characteristics, indicating the Russian origin of the raw materials. VFK LLP, quite likely, carried out activities aimed at circumventing provisions on restrictive measures by selling Russian-made birch ply to legal entities or individuals in Poland.
