Timber Sale Contracts in Uganda: 12 Clauses You Need
1. Price basis: per unit against measured volume, never a lump sum for "the block".
2. Staged payment: deposit before felling, instalments during, balance on completion. Payment only at the end invites renegotiation once your trees are on the ground and unsellable to anyone else.
3. Stump height: because eucalyptus coppices, and your free second rotation is worth more than most people realise. The buyer has no interest in it whatsoever.
The Twelve Clauses
| Clause | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| 1. Price basis | Per pole by grade, or per cubic metre against measured volume. A lump sum transfers all volume uncertainty to you at an unfavourable rate. |
| 2. Payment schedule | Deposit, staged instalments, balance on completion. Never all at the end. |
| 3. Scope — which trees | Marked on a map and physically marked on the ground. Verbal boundaries move. |
| 4. Timeline | Start and completion dates. A half-felled block left through a rainy season is a serious problem. |
| 5. Stump height | Directly determines eucalyptus coppice regrowth — your next rotation. |
| 6. Cut quality | Clean cuts, not shattered stumps. Torn stumps invite rot and produce weak shoots. |
| 7. Extraction routes | Agreed in advance, or the crew makes its own through your standing trees. |
| 8. Damage to retained trees | What happens, and what it costs, if trees not in the sale are damaged. |
| 9. Site condition on completion | Slash disposal, rut repair, drainage restored, gates closed. |
| 10. Permits | Whose responsibility, explicitly. Commercial timber movement requires documentation. |
| 11. Safety and insurance | Felling is hazardous. An accident involving an uninsured crew on your land becomes your problem. |
| 12. Dispute resolution | Agreed while everyone is still friendly, because that is the only time it can be. |
We are not lawyers and this is not legal advice. For a significant sale, have the agreement reviewed by a Ugandan lawyer — but if these twelve are not addressed, the draft is not ready for a lawyer either.
We market stands and support the contract so you are not negotiating alone.
Getting the Payment Structure Right
Why payment-on-completion is dangerous
- Once your trees are felled, they are worth far less to anyone but the buyer who felled them. Your negotiating position collapses at exactly the moment the money is due.
- A deposit before felling demonstrates the buyer has capital and intent.
- Staged instalments tied to volume extracted keep the incentives aligned throughout.
- A retention released on satisfactory site condition is the only thing that reliably gets slash cleared and ruts repaired.
Protecting Your Next Rotation
Eucalyptus regrows from the cut stump, typically giving two or three rotations from one planting. That is one of the strongest arguments for eucalyptus — and a careless harvest destroys it.
- Specify stump height. Too high or too low and regrowth suffers.
- Require clean cuts. Shattered stumps rot.
- Control the felling season. Felling into a long dry season stresses regrowth.
- Keep machinery off the stumps. Extraction routes agreed in advance protect them.
- Plan the shoot thinning yourself, after the buyer has gone. Each stump throws multiple shoots and must be reduced to one or two.
When to Walk Away
- Pressure to sign immediately, or an offer that "expires today"
- No written contract, or one that appears only after felling has started
- Refusal to provide permits, licences or references from growers they bought from last season
- A lump-sum offer made without any measurement or site walk
- Payment entirely on completion, with no deposit
- Unwillingness to specify stump height, extraction routes or site condition
- Crews arriving before the contract is signed
Any one of these is reason to slow down. Two or more and you are dealing with someone who expects you not to read carefully. More on vetting in tree buyers in Uganda.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should be in a timber sale contract?
At minimum: price basis per unit against measured volume, a staged payment schedule with a deposit before felling, exactly which trees are included marked on a map, start and completion dates, stump height, cut quality, agreed extraction routes, liability for damage to retained trees, site condition on completion, who holds the permits, safety and insurance, and a dispute mechanism.
If those twelve are not addressed, the draft is not ready for a lawyer to review.
Should I accept a lump sum for my whole block?
Only with a measured inventory in hand, so you know what you are agreeing to. A lump sum transfers all volume uncertainty to you, at a rate set by someone who has seen far more blocks than you have.
Price per unit against measured volume wherever the buyer will accept it.
Why does stump height matter in a contract?
Because eucalyptus coppices from the stump, giving a second and often third rotation with no establishment cost. Stump height, cut cleanliness and felling season all affect whether that regrowth is strong.
The buyer has no interest in your next crop. If it is not in the contract, it will not happen.
Is it safe to be paid after the harvest is finished?
No. Once your trees are felled they are worth far less to anyone but the buyer who felled them, so your negotiating position collapses exactly when the money falls due.
Take a deposit before felling, instalments during extraction, and hold a retention released on satisfactory site condition.
Who should get the timber movement permits?
Whoever the contract says — which is why it must say. Commercial timber movement in Uganda requires documentation.
If you are selling standing, make it explicit that the buyer obtains and holds the permits, and that they indemnify you if they do not.
Do Not Sign a Timber Contract Alone
We measure the stand, take it to several buyers, and make sure the contract protects your payment, your site and your next rotation.
Over a decade establishing, measuring and managing eucalyptus, pine and indigenous plantations across Uganda. Based in Wakiso, Kampala. Reviewed and updated September 6, 2026.
