below please find a selection of the latest news from the world of pulp and paper. And don't forget to visit our new LinkedIn and Twitter accounts. We look forward to a lively exchange.

ipw news

The Feldmuehle is switching steam generation in Q4/22 to an alternative fuel, light heating oil, at short notice. This will ensure the continued operation of the site in the event of a worsening gas shortage. This step also secures the competitiveness of Feldmuehle in face of the current sharp rising gas prices. The necessary investments of 2.6 million euros will be financed by an extraordinary shareholder contribution.

Mondi, in partnership with Fiorini International, a converter and packaging producer based in Italy, has successfully created and launched a new fully recyclable paper packaging for a premium Italian pasta brand. Following a complete overhaul of its packaging design, Antico Pastificio Umbro decided to combine the expertise of Mondi and Fiorini International to design and produce a paper bag with a viewing window for its premium pasta ranges. After the complete roll out, this new packaging solution will support the company’s sustainability goal of reducing plastic by saving up to 20 tonnes of plastic per year.

WAN-IFRA is pleased to announce the appointment of Martin Fröhlich as Director Digital Revenue Network. Fröhlich, a native German, was previously a Deputy Head of Newsroom at Redaktionsgemeinschaft ostwestfaelisch-lippischer Verlage and has been in the industry for more than 25 years. During his career, he worked as a reporter, editor, media coach, head of departments, project manager, moderator and technical adviser.

Vajda-Papír has chosen Voith Paper and Toscotec’s digital documentation platform OnCare.eDoc for the comprehensive and user-friendly management of all the technical information of its new tissue line. On 6 July 2022, Vajda-Papír has started up an Ahead 2.2L tissue machine supplied by Toscotec on a full turnkey basis including the complete production line and all auxiliary systems.

Sappi is pleased to announce that the science-based carbon emission reduction target of 41.5% per ton of product has been approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The SBTi is a collaboration between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Andritz has received an order from Guangxi Sun Paper Co., Ltd. to supply four stock preparation systems for its tissue machines PM 9 to 12 in Beihai, Guangxi Province, China. Start-up is scheduled for the third or fourth quarter of 2022. The stock preparation systems have an aggregate design capacity of 360 tons per day and process NBKP (Needle Bleached Kraft Pulp) and LBKP (Leaf Bleached Kraft Pulp) to produce tissue. Andritz will install the complete process technology from pulping to refining, including fiber recovery. The scope of supply also comprises erection, commissioning, start-up, training, and service.

ABB has been appointed by Klabin, one of Brazil’s largest producers and exporters of packaging paper and sustainable solutions for paper packaging, to deliver the management and power distribution system (PDS) for their Puma II project, which will support their production target of 920,000 tons per year. ABB will also supply the drives and motors for the project through Valmet.

Raw materials, functionality and printing techniques are fundamental factors when choosing a type of packaging. With more than 80% of purchasing decisions made at the point of sale, product presentation is key to brand recognition. This is why Lecta has created a versatile range of SBS graphic paperboard with a silk finish: Diva Art (1-side coated) and Diva Art Duo (2-side coated), for creative, sustainable projects.

A new survey commissioned by Stora Enso in March 2022 among 2,400 book readers and listeners in the UK, France, Germany and the US showed that people still overwhelmingly prefer physical books (65%) to e-books (21%) or audiobooks (14%). And consumers are willing to pay a premium for carbon neutral books.

Bain Capital Private Equity, a global private investment firm, has signed definitive documents to enter into joint ownership agreement for Fedrigoni, a global producer of self-adhesive labels and fibre-based packaging products, with BC Partners, an international investment firm. Bain Capital acquired Fedrigoni in 2017. Under Bain Capital’s ownership, Fedrigoni has more than doubled Adjusted Sales and nearly tripled Adjusted EBITDA through a combination of organic growth acceleration and M&A execution.

Ms. Katri Hokkanen (M.Sc. Econ) has been appointed CFO at Valmet as of August 1, 2022. She will report to President and CEO Pasi Laine. Katri Hokkanen has worked as Valmet’s interim CFO since May 1, 2022. Hokkanen began her career at Valmet in 2006. Prior to holding the interim CFO position, she worked as Vice President, Finance in Valmet’s Pulp and Energy business line in 2017–2022 and led the finance operations in Valmet’s Asia-Pacific Area organization in 2015–2017 and in the EMEA services business in 2013–2015.

After 2021, the international rating agency ISS ESG has again awarded the Voith Group’s sustainability performance a B- rating this year. According to the current rating, Voith is among the three best companies worldwide in terms of sustainability, compared with 176 other plant and mechanical engineering companies. With the current rating, Voith achieves prime status for the 5th time.

International technology group Andritz has received a five-year Smart service contract from BMC Moerdijk in the Netherlands to supply a Metris BOA platform including KPI dashboards and boiler operator advisor apps as well as automatically generated performance reports. The Smart power boiler service uses the Metris BOA web platform – developed by Andritz – to build KPI dashboards and operator advisor apps based on live as well as historical data to optimize and analyze power plant processes and monitor the equipment installed.

ABB today released the 3/2022 edition of ABB Review, the company’s technical journal. The lead topic for this quarter is “better decisions,” examining the decision making benefits of digital solutions throughout the enterprise, from the boardroom to the plant floor. As decision makers need to understand and analyze data quickly and accurately, ABB provides a broad variety of technical solutions to support them.

The rising costs of raw materials and product transport due to reduced imports from the Chinese market are the main variables that are creating price increases with the risk of penalizing sales in the US tissue market, even though, paradoxically, demand in some regions is greater than available local product capacity. An example of this is Florida, a territory which in recent years has experienced an exponential growth in population thanks to an increase in births and a greater employment of immigrants.

The Fachpack in Nuremberg ranks among the most important packaging industry gatherings. From 27 to 29 September 2022, Sappi will be presenting its latest products and solutions for functional paper packaging, flexible packaging papers, label papers, containerboard and paperboard. The company is clearly focusing its efforts on sustainable, recyclable and innovative solutions. Visitors to the fair will discover how to convey an even more high-impact brand image and which paper packaging options feature strong barrier properties while still protecting goods.

Chemical and biological detection technology specialist Eluceda has developed and launched a rapid, quantitative and portable test for hydrogen peroxide in water – with results given in 60 seconds. The new technology solution is the latest in a line of tests that uses Eluceda’s established E-Sens™ handheld detectors and is capable of detecting hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) in water at concentrations between 1 and 1000 parts per million (ppm). Eluceda was approached by a supplier in the paper and pulp industry to design an accurate and easily repeatable test method that could detect hydrogen peroxide at the necessary concentrations within the paper manufacturing process.

The European Commission released the Winter Preparedness Package on Wednesday. The measures outlined in the package respond to the intertwined needs of European citizens and industry, in the face of a deteriorating situation regarding energy supplies. They also introduce a greater level of uncertainty, requiring belated changes to emergency plans previously developed by Member States.

International technology group Andritz has received an order from Sichuan Huaqiao Fenghuang Paper Co. Ltd. to supply a patented combi-pulping system for its mill in Guanghan, Deyang City, Sichuan Province, China. Start-up is scheduled for the third quarter of 2023.

bio-fibre news

Stora Enso and Northvolt are joining forces to create sustainable batteries using lignin-based hard carbon produced with renewable wood from the Nordic forests. The aim is to develop the world’s first industrialised battery featuring anode sourced entirely from European raw materials, lowering both the carbon footprint and the cost.