Stora Enso Transforms Oulu Facility into Europe’s Most Advanced Renewable Packaging Hub

Stora Enso Transforms Oulu Facility into Europe’s Most Advanced Renewable Packaging Hub

(IN BRIEF) Stora Enso has commenced the production ramp-up of its new consumer packaging board line at its Oulu facility in Finland, with initial deliveries scheduled for Q2 2025. The project, which began in 2022 by converting an idle paper machine into a flexible line for producing folding box board and coated unbleached kraft, is set to have an annual capacity of 750,000 tonnes. With an investment of approximately EUR 1 billion, the new line is expected to achieve EBITDA breakeven by the end of 2025 and operate at full capacity by 2027, generating about EUR 800 million in annual sales. This initiative strengthens Stora Enso’s position in the growing renewable packaging market, especially for sectors such as frozen, chilled, and dry food and beverage multipacks in Europe and North America. The Oulu site, employing around 650 people, will also produce unbleached pulp and kraftliner, with increased wood consumption from local and international sources bolstered by the acquisition of Junnikkala sawmills. The project aligns with the Group’s sustainability strategy and overall vision for renewable resource-based products.

(PRESS RELEASE) HELSINKI, 19-Mar-2024 — /EuropaWire/ —Stora Enso (HEL: STERV), a leading provider of renewable solutions in packaging, biomaterials, wooden constructions and paper, has initiated the production ramp-up of its innovative consumer packaging board line at the Oulu site in Finland, with the first customer shipments slated for the second quarter of 2025. In 2022, the company opted to transform its idle paper machine at Oulu into a versatile consumer packaging board line, capable of producing both folding box board (FBB) and coated unbleached kraft (CUK), with an impressive annual capacity of 750,000 tonnes. This major project is progressing in line with the original schedule and a budget of roughly EUR 1 billion. Stora Enso anticipates that this new line will achieve EBITDA breakeven by the end of 2025, reaching full operational capacity by 2027 and generating annual sales of around EUR 800 million.

Renewable packaging represents the fastest-growing segment for Stora Enso, and this investment underpins the Group’s strategy by enhancing its market offering in the expanding FBB and CUK sectors. The new line primarily targets packaging for frozen, chilled, and dry foods, as well as beverage multipacks, catering mainly to customers across Europe and North America.

Hans Sohlström, President and CEO of Stora Enso, commented, “This state-of-the-art line will be the most modern and cost-efficient in Europe. With this investment, our Oulu facility is set to become the Group’s largest production center—an integrated mega-site that will focus on future packaging board grades with a flexible production layout. This initiative will not only bolster the profitability and competitiveness of our consumer board and containerboard products, but it will also allow us to optimize operations at other sites, such as our liquid packaging board production at the Skoghall facility in Sweden.”

Following this new investment and the earlier conversion completed in 2021, the Oulu site will produce unbleached pulp, kraftliner, and consumer board in both reel and sheet forms, employing approximately 650 people. Additionally, wood consumption at Oulu will rise by about one million cubic metres, reaching roughly 3.5 million cubic metres per year. The production process will utilize local wood supplies as well as pulp from Stora Enso’s Enocell site in Finland and Veracel site in Brazil. Furthermore, the recent acquisition of the Junnikkala sawmills will secure a cost-effective, long-term supply of raw materials, including wood chips, pulpwood, and biomass.

For further information, please contact:
Carl Norell
SVP Corporate Communications
tel. +46 72 241 0349

Investor enquiries:
Anna-Lena Åström
SVP Investor Relations
tel. +46 70 210 7691

Stora Enso stands at the forefront of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials, and wooden construction, embodying the belief that everything made from fossil-based materials today can be made from trees tomorrow. As one of the largest private forest owners globally, the Group employed around 19,000 people in 2024 and generated sales of EUR 9 billion. Stora Enso’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm AB (STE A, STE R), and are also traded in the USA OTC Markets (OTCQX) as ADRs and ordinary shares (SEOAY, SEOFF, SEOJF). For more details, visit storaenso.com.

SOURCE: STORA ENSO OYJ