Uruguay Reaffirms Regional Leadership in Sustainable Forestry and Wood Construction at Woodrise Congress 2025

Uruguay took part in the fifth edition of the Woodrise Congress 2025, held from September 22 to 25 in Vancouver, Canada—an event that brought together over 2,000 industry leaders from 25 countries.
Through its national stand, Uruguay XXI positioned the country as a key player in the global transition toward sustainable construction, showcasing its certified forestry model and favorable environment for productive investment.

With more than 90% of its commercial plantations certified and an almost entirely renewable energy matrix, Uruguay offers exceptional conditions for projects that integrate sustainability, innovation, and institutional stability. These strengths were highly valued by congress attendees, who recognized Uruguay as a regional model for its regulatory framework, environmental traceability, and commitment to a low-carbon economy.

Arboreal: Innovation and Vision from Uruguay to the World

In this context, Matías Abergo, president and co-founder of Arboreal, spoke at the plenary session “The Role of Business Leaders: Building a 21st-Century Mass Timber Facility.” He shared the experience of his company—one of the largest mass timber producers in South America—and Uruguay’s path toward consolidating a forestry innovation ecosystem.

During his presentation, Abergo highlighted Uruguay’s leadership in the transition to sustainable construction, noting that “the forests we use are FSC-certified, ensuring responsible management practices that include biodiversity conservation and full traceability from forest to customer.”

He recounted Arboreal’s evolution from its origins in 2017 as a small construction company to becoming a Latin American benchmark in structural timber systems.
“In 2018, there was no mass timber production in Uruguay. We started by importing materials from Europe, but the costs were very high. That’s why we decided to build a complete value chain—from the sawmill to certified industrial production of CLT and GLT,” he explained.

Abergo emphasized the collaborative role of the private sector, government, universities, and international organizations in driving regulatory and professional training changes that encouraged the adoption of mass timber. “We had to educate and engage architects, engineers, developers, and institutions. Today, Uruguay has solid regulations, tax incentives, and an integrated industry that enable efficient, competitive, and sustainable wood construction,” he said.

Arboreal currently exports more than 5,000 containers of pine products to over 30 countries and holds European, American, and Australian certifications for its structural materials. Its model integrates structural engineering, BIM modeling, CNC automation, and off-site production—reducing construction time and costs while promoting safer and more skilled working environments.

The company also announced the launch of a new modular prefabrication plant and a 2026–2030 roadmap aimed at doubling its mass timber production, expanding into new markets, and developing plant-based materials for increasingly low-carbon construction.

A Growing Sector Driving Sustainable Development

Uruguay’s participation in Woodrise 2025 forms part of a broader strategy to promote the forestry-wood sector as a pillar of sustainable investment and innovation. In recent years, the country has attracted more than US$650 million in international investment, consolidating an industrial ecosystem that spans pulp and solid wood to biomass energy generation.

Companies such as Oji Holdings, Lumin, and Arboreal exemplify the dynamism of a sector that combines responsibly managed natural resources, modern infrastructure, and stable public policies. This framework has positioned Uruguay as a Latin American leader in the bioeconomy, with the capacity to attract long-term investment and generate high-quality employment across the country.

With its presence at Woodrise 2025, Uruguay reaffirmed its commitment to sustainability, technological innovation, and building a future based on renewable materials. Uruguayan wood—certified, traceable, and responsibly sourced—is consolidating its status as a symbol of sustainable development and a tangible opportunity to build a greener, more competitive model from the southern hemisphere.