Romanian investigators are examining allegations that employees at a major timber processing company evaded substantial tax payments through undeclared wood sales. According to an official prosecution document, the local subsidiary of Austria’s HS Timber Group is suspected of failing to pay approximately $8 million in taxes.
The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) is leading the ongoing inquiry. In a statement, HS Timber Production Romania emphasized its full cooperation with authorities and maintained that it has always adhered to all legal standards. No formal charges have been filed at this stage.
The investigation centers on company practices between 2010 and 2017. Prosecutors allege that the firm received significantly more timber from suppliers than was officially recorded—an excess known as “overlength.” This unreported wood, valued at over $30 million and amounting to nearly 580,000 cubic meters, was later sold without the required tax declarations.
Authorities further claim that to conceal the resulting funds, employees documented fictitious expenses through service contracts with the firm’s Austrian parent company, services which were reportedly never rendered. The parent entity was formerly named SPB Beteiligungsverwaltung GmbH before rebranding as HS Timber Group GmbH in 2019. The Romanian operation was previously known as Holzindustrie Schweighofer.
This case revives longstanding scrutiny of the company’s accounting practices. Romanian officials and forestry agencies have conducted multiple probes into the subsidiary since 2011 over allegations of underreporting timber volumes. Most prior investigations were closed due to the statute of limitations, leaving one active case concerning overlength wood still under review.
In its defense, the company highlighted recent efforts to enhance sustainability and transparency, including the implementation of an action plan designed to improve the accuracy of wood tracking and measurement procedures.
