“We’re forced to shut down parts of our newsprint production,” says Henrik Sjölund, head of Holmen Paper. “Falling demand, pressure on prices, excessively high costs of raw materials and, not least, the strong Swedish krona makes this measure inevitable. It’s extremely regrettable that it has to affect so many of our employees.”
The restructuring process is a further step in the strategy of concentrating Holmen Paper’s Swedish operations on speciality paper.

“This spring, we’ll be introducing book paper from Braviken while further refining the speciality products that are already being produced today,” says Henrik Sjölund. “The measures are part of our change strategy in which we’re developing unique speciality paper that makes the production processes of our customers more cost efficient.”

Following the restructuring programme, Braviken Paper Mill is estimated to have 360 employees and two paper machines with an annual capacity of just under 600 000 t of printing paper. When the changes currently underway at Holmen Paper have been completed, it is estimated that the Swedish units will be able to produce 1 150 000 t of printing paper, of which 75% will be speciality paper, a portion that is expected to grow further.