The Bad Wurzach-based company Zollikofer has taken over Reko Energie Bois in Réding, eastern France. the international logistics and trading company for sawmill by-products, waste wood as well as forest and energy wood based in Seibranz with.
Founded in 2007, Reko offers comprehensive solutions for the supply of energy wood and specializes in the utilization of wood in the French market, particularly in the preparation of fuels for biomass cogeneration plants. The company is a leader in the wood processing and trading sector in France.
Three locations
The French company employs 16 people. Reko has locations in Réding (administrative headquarters, production and storage), Morville (production and storage) and Strasbourg (production site). Annual turnover is 120,000 tons, Zollikofer says. This means that Reko plays a central role in the wood and biomass industry.
According to the statement, the activities of the eastern French company include wood purchasing and logging through purchases of stump wood in the forest, where wood is purchased and felled directly on site in the forest. In addition, Reko markets all wood assortments in material and thermal areas, thereby maximizing both the material and energetic benefits of the wood.
Utilization of biomass
Another important area of activity is the utilization of natural and recycled biomass. This is processed in such a way that it is suitable either for material recycling or as fuel for biomass combustion. In this way, Reko makes a significant contribution to the sustainable use of wood resources, Zollikofer emphasizes.
The purchase of Reko “is an important strategic step for Zollikofer to expand its business in the French market and an important step to continue growing in the biomass sector,” explains Philipp Hill, Managing Director at Zollikofer. The secure supply of Biomass cogeneration plants of the Koehler Group, to which Zollikofer has belonged since 2021, will be further optimized and secured through the takeover and the associated expansion of business activities to France.
The new managing director
Frank Andlauer, head of forest wood at Zollikofer, will take over the operational management of Reko together with the founder and previous shareholder Maurice Schott. “Maurice Schott will accompany us on our journey together for another two years before he retires,” says Andlauer.
The Koehler Group was founded in 1807 and is still family-run today. The group’s core business is the development and production of high-quality specialty papers. These include thermal papers, playing card cardboard, drinks coasters, fine papers, carbonless papers, recycled papers, decorative papers, groundwood cardboard, sublimation papers and, since 2019, innovative specialty papers for the packaging industry.
About the Koehler Group
In Germany, the Koehler Group, with its approximately 2,500 employees, has five production sites, and three more are located in the USA. The group operates internationally, with exports accounting for around 67 percent in 2022, with annual sales of 1.3 billion euros.
As an energy-intensive company, Koehler and its Koehler Renewable Energy division invest in renewable energy projects such as wind energy, hydropower, photovoltaics and biomass. The group has set itself the goal of producing more energy from renewable sources than is needed for paper production by 2030.
This is Zollikofer
The Zollikofer Group was founded in 1966 in Bad Wurzach and, according to its own information, has since developed into a major provider of processing, trade and logistics for wood and wood products, particularly sawmill by-products and bark products, recycled wood and biomass for thermal and material recycling. The collection and logistics of raw materials are largely carried out using the company’s own fleet of vehicles.
