Volker Böhm from the Schultze & Braun law firm remains the insolvency administrator. According to a statement, Böhm is examining “whether business operations of the two companies can continue during the insolvency proceedings”.
Ziegler Holzindustrie is both the central and the original company of the entire group. Around 700 people are employed in Plößberg. As in the case of the holding company and Naturheld, their wages and salaries are secured for the next three months through insolvency benefits.
With an annual cutting volume of around 2.2 million m³ of log wood, the sawmill “on the Betzenmühle” near the Czech border is the largest sawmill site in Europe. Four log yards (two each for short and long logs) and a total of six saw lines (gangsaws, band saws and chippers) process the huge quantities of log wood delivered by 400 trucks a day. “Plößberg is always operating at 100%,” Managing Director Stefan Ziegler emphasized in an interview with the Holzkurier in May.
According to the last published balance sheet, Ziegler Holzindustrie generated just under €480 million in sales revenue in 2022.
As Schultze & Braun further reports, “Holzzentrum Ziegler” is also expected to file for insolvency at the Weiden District Court this week. According to Ziegler, the company with its six planing lines is “an extension of the Plößberg sawmill”.
In 2021, Ziegler also inaugurated the Ziegler Naturenergie pellet mill in Pressath/DE with an annual capacity of 225,000 t of pellets. In this case, too, the decision for an insolvency application has reportedly been made, and the application is expected to be submitted this week. Both companies have close business ties with the sawmill in Plößberg.
