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Stora Enso invests 23 million in plant in Finland

Stora Enso is investing 23 million euros in the flexibilisation and capacity expansion of the containerboard plant in Varkaus. This will also increase capacity for the use of recycled fibres.

Stora Enso is investing 23 million euros in the flexibilisation and capacity expansion of the containerboard plant in Varkaus. This will also increase the capacity for the use of recycled fibres. Preparatory work for the investment will begin immediately and the investment will be completed by the end of 2022.

The aim of the investment is to increase the flexibility of the product range for customers and to optimise the Increase the overall capacity of the site by approx. 10 per cent. This also increases the use of recycled fibres in production in addition to fresh wood fibres.

Use of recycled fibres is increased

Unbleached softwood pulp and high-quality brown and white cover board for corrugated cardboard are produced at the Varkaus site. In addition to unbleached softwood pulp The paper mill currently uses around one third of all cardboard packaging recycled in Finland as raw material. The investment will further increase the use of recycled fibres at the site.

The Varkaus site is part of the Stora Enso Packaging Materials Division, which has extensive expertise in the use of wood fibres from product design through to the end product and recycling. The Promoting and enabling the recycling of cardboard packaging products is an important sustainability goal, and investments in recycling capacities are a concrete way to support this goal. Stora Enso strives to, to produce 100 per cent renewable products by 2050, that are fully in line with the circular economy and have positive carbon dioxide emissions.

More flexibility

„The investment will increase the capacity of our recycled fibre plant and give us the flexibility to meet the needs of our customers. increase the use of recycled fibres in our portfolio. The investment will also improve production efficiency through technical changes to both the board machine and the pulp mill's drying system. It will also increase our flexibility to offer customers different product qualities and slightly increase the site's capacity.“
Jarkko Tehomaa, Director of Stora Enso's Varkaus board mill

The environmental impact assessment (EIA) and the updating of the environmental licence as well as the preparatory work for the investment will be started immediately. The Investment is carried out during ongoing operations, and the final installations will be carried out in connection with the annual maintenance shutdown of the site in late autumn 2022.

Around 400 people are employed at the Stora Enso Varkaus site. The Annual production capacity of the packaging board plant is 450,000 tonnes. Pulp, sawn timber and veneer wood are also produced at the site.

Source: Stora Enso