below please find a selection of the latest news from the world of pulp and paper.

ipw news

Taking place from 19 - 20 June 2024 at the Messe Düsseldorf exhibition centre in Germany, Chemspec Europe is the meeting point to find new suppliers, enhance existing business relationships, network with industry experts and discover the trends and innovations driving the fine and speciality chemical industry forwards.

Valmet will deliver a new digester top separator to Södra Cell’s Mönsterås Mill in Sweden. The order is included in Valmet's orders received of the first quarter 2024. The value of the order will not be disclosed. The delivery is scheduled to take place in October 2024.

UPM Raflatac opens a new slitting and distribution terminal in Mumbai, India. The new facility further improves service and quality to UPM Raflatac’s customers and strengthens the relationships in the region. “Our talented team has created a great workplace for our employees, a great facility to serve our customers and a great platform for growth. With the new modern facility, we can stock more material locally which will optimize lead times, enhance service, and help meet the diverse and dynamic needs of our customers,“ says Alan Wright, Senior Vice President, EMEIA Region, UPM Raflatac.

Mondi recently put a new slitting and rewinding unit into operation at its Slovak paper mill in Ružomberok. The equipment allows for an extended capacity in narrow reels thus complementing Mondi’s portfolio offering. “We want to give our customers supply security for their paper needs in folio and various reel widths and for this we needed to extend our narrow reel capacity,” explains Bernhard Cantzler, Marketing and Sales Director at Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper.

With high pulp costs and scarcity of operator talent, Brazilian tissue converters are on a quest to boost capacity, reduce costs and simplify operations. BW Converting Solution’s Hygiene division will present its suite of next-level technologies at Tissue Summit Brazil that harness the power of automation to operate more efficiently and cost effectively, with a reduced environmental footprint.

French tissue manufacturer Papeteries du Cotentin (Papeco), purchased a TT SYD Steel Yankee Dryer and a complete high-performance steam and condensate plant from Toscotec to fully replace their existing cast iron dryer and steam system on PM3 at their Orval sur Sienne mill in Normandy. The project includes modifications to the machine for the new steam system and it is planned for start-up in the third quarter of 2024.

SCA increases the prices on white and brown kraftliner in Europe by €80 per tonne. The new price is valid from April 1, 2024.

“We see an improved and solid demand in the market for kraftliner with a good balance in the supply chain. The continued cost pressure is evident and must be managed to safeguard stable supply of sustainable kraftliner,” says Mikael Frölander, Vice President Marketing and Sales at SCA Containerboard.

bio-fibre news

Södra has decided to invest in a new condensing turbine in the pulp mill at Mörrum, which will increase the county of Blekinge’s electricity generation by 20 percent. The investment, amounting to several hundreds of millions of Swedish kronor, is a major and important step for Södra in strengthening competitiveness by utilising more of the wood raw material from family forestry and thereby increasing the profitability of forest estates.

Less raw material, less waste, fewer emissions – the circular economy is at the top of the agenda. Choosing fibre-based packaging such as paper carrier bags is one piece of the puzzle that retailers and brand owners can complete to take the next step in contributing to the bio-based circular economy. Paper carrier bags are a welcome resource in the paper recycling mix. A member of the initiative “The Paper Bag” explains how paper carrier bags are recycled into new fibre-based products. An infographic shows the cycle of paper carrier bags.

International technology group Andritz has delivered a second fiber production line to Pavatex, a member of Soprema Group. The line, which includes a chip handling and pressurized refining system, has now successfully produced first fibers at the insulation board production facility in Golbey, France.