Stora Enso decided on a billion investment in Oulu

Stora Enso has decided to invest approximately EUR 1 billion to convert the remaining idle paper machine at the Group’s Oulu site in Finland into a high-volume consumer board production line. The investment supports the Group’s growth strategy in renewable packaging by providing new volume for growing packaging segments. Production on the converted machine is estimated to start in early 2025.

Following the first machine conversion at the Oulu site in 2021 from paper to kraftliner, the remaining idle paper line will be converted into a state-of-the-art highly flexible consumer board line. The total annual capacity will be 750,000 tonnes of consumer board. The target end-use segments are food and beverage packaging, especially frozen and chilled, and dry and fast food, mainly in Europe and North America.

The total investment will be approximately EUR 1 billion during 2022–2025.

The investment is fully aligned with Stora Enso’s sustainability commitments. It will support circularity by further enhancing the recycling performance of the Packaging Materials division’s product portfolio. The Oulu site’s total scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions will remain at a low level as they were already reduced by 80% during the first conversion in 2021.

The investment will create approximately 300 new jobs at the Oulu site and support functions including Herman Andersson Oy terminal and port operations, and an additional 1,500 indirect employment opportunities overall. The wood consumption of the new line will be approximately one million cubic metres of pulp wood.