The foundation stone was laid to the area of fibre line of the new mill by Ismo Nousiainen, CEO of Metsä Fibre, Jari-Pekka Johansson, Project Director of the Kemi bioproduct mill project, and Mika Vuoti, the on-site contact person. To ensure safety in terms of the coronavirus, the foundation stone was laid without the presence of guests.

A video and images of the event are available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlpABEZSkQo and https://databank.metsagroup.com/l/7tnPNh-w8fjK.

Totalling EUR 1.6 billion, the investment in Metsä Group’s Kemi bioproduct mill is the largest in the history of the Finnish forest industry. Through its direct value chain, the new bioproduct mill will employ around 2,500 people in Finland once it is completed. This translates into some 1,500 more than the employment effect of the current Kemi pulp mill. The bioproduct mill project has a high degree of Finnish origin, approximately 70 per cent.

“The impact of this large-scale industrial investment is significant. The Kemi bioproduct mill will increase Finland’s annual exports by around EUR 0.5 billion and its annual positive income effect through the value of the wood raw material and the purchasing of Finnish labour is likewise roughly EUR 0.5 billion,” says Ismo Nousiainen, CEO of Metsä Fibre.

During the construction phase, the bioproduct mill’s employment effect will be approximately 10,000 person-years, more than half of which will be seen in Kemi. The total number of employees working during the construction phase is estimated to be about 15,000.

“We are proceeding purposefully towards the start-up of the new mill in the third quarter of 2023. At the moment, the project is focused on earthworks and this autumn, we will be moving on to the first equipment installations. Some 450 people are currently working on the site,” says Jari-Pekka Johansson, Project Director.

Operating entirely without fossil fuels, the Kemi bioproduct mill will produce annually some 1.5 million tonnes of softwood and hardwood pulp, as well as many other bioproducts. It will also produce 2.0 TWh of renewable energy a year, which is equal to approximately 2.5% of Finland’s total annual electricity production.

Progress on the bioproduct mill’s construction site can be followed via real-time webcams at www.metsafibre.com/webcamskemi.