Stora Enso Kvarnsveden mill
Stora Enso will start co-determination negotiations with employees at its Kvarnsveden Mill in Sweden and Veitsiluoto Mill in Finland regarding a plan to permanently close down pulp and paper production at both mills. The planned closures would take place during the third quarter of 2021 and affect directly 670 people in Finland and 440 people in Sweden. Source: Timberbiz
Paper demand in Europe has declined for over a decade. This trend has further accelerated due to the pandemic, which has led to changes in consumer behaviour. As a consequence, there is a significant overcapacity in the European paper market, which has resulted in historically low price levels and challenged the cost-competitiveness of many paper mills. Both Kvarnsveden and Veitsiluoto mills are loss-making, and their profitability is expected to remain unsatisfactory also going forward.
“Unfortunately, in the rapidly declining paper market, we need to adjust our production capacity to improve the competitiveness of our total paper business. This sadly means the closure of unprofitable assets. As communicated last year, we have reviewed our strategy and are shaping our business for accelerated growth and value. We are focusing on packaging, building solutions and biomaterials innovations, where we see strong growth potential,” said Stora Enso’s President and CEO Annica Bresky.
“We have examined several options to improve the financial situation for Veitsiluoto and Kvarnsveden mills. However, none of these options have proved feasible in ensuring a cost-competitive future for the mills.”
The planned mill closures would reduce Stora Enso’s paper production capacity by 35% to 2.6 million tonnes per year.
No decisions regarding the planned closures nor employee impact will be taken until the local co-determination negotiations have been concluded.
The Kvarnsveden Mill in Borlänge, Sweden has two paper machines with a combined annual capacity of 565 000 tonnes of supercalendered (SC) magazine papers and improved newsprint, used in magazines, newspapers, catalogues, supplements and retail advertising. The mill has also an integrated softwood thermomechanical pulp (TMP) mill with an annual capacity of 900 000 tonnes. The planned closure would impact a maximum of 440 persons.
The Veitsiluoto Mill in Kemi, Finland has a total annual capacity of 790 000 tonnes on three paper machines. Two machines produce woodfree uncoated paper (WFU) for office use and one machine produces coated paper grades, mainly for magazines but also for packaging applications. In addition, the mill has an integrated chemical pulp mill (360 000 t/a), groundwood mill and a sheeting plant. The planned closure of the mill would impact a maximum of 670 people, of whom 530 in Paper division and 140 at our maintenance company Efora.
