Metsä Fibre, part of Metsä Group, is initiating a production shutdown at its Joutseno pulp mill on 31 March 2026. The production shutdown is used to adjust pulp production to match the current uncertain demand situation in the Asian markets.
The takeover of the Condat paper mill has come to an end. However, the site is very likely to abandon paper production altogether. According to the newspapers Les Echos and La Tribune, as well as the local press (ICI Périgord and Sud-Ouest), the Bordeaux Commercial Court has chosen the takeover bid submitted by Condat Solutions, a subsidiary of Groupe SPB (Société de Participation de la Braye). In total, only 21 of the 202 jobs will be retained. The bid from the Czech company Finesta was ultimately rejected. SPB has announced a "multi-sector reindustrialization project […] with high added value, based on a decarbonized circular economy," with a commitment to create 300 direct jobs at the site within five years.
Metsä Fibre’s Rauma pulp mill celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Since starting operations in 1996, the mill has become a significant employer in the Satakunta region and an essential part of the area's industrial history and future.
The Colombian Association of Pulp, Paper and Paperboard Industry Technicians (ACOTEPAC) is holding its 34th International Congress and ExpoAcotepac on February 25, 26 and 27, 2026, at the Salón Ritz of the Hotel Dann Carlton in Cali, Colombia.
The Colombian engineering company PrismaNova has been officially appointed as the authorized agent of Devasol, the Slovenian specialist in advanced dewatering systems.
Industrial trials mark a key step toward expanding Fiberdom’s commercially proven plastic-free fiber material into new packaging applications aligned with emerging EU packaging regulations.
Valmet will supply two Valmet Fiberline Analyzers to Södra Cell Mörrum, Sweden, helping the mill improve process stability and product quality. The analyzers will enhance the mill’s online measurement capabilities by delivering highly accurate and reliable data to optimize the performance of both fiberlines.
Corrugators and printers serving leading brands with high-performance packaging and displays rely on the consistent availability of premium coated and uncoated liner board.
Once again this year, the Leipzig-based emtec Electronic GmbH will be exhibiting its innovative measuring instruments at IMPS 2026 in Munich. From March 17 to 19, the event will focus on advances in paper and board production.
PaperWeek 2026 proved to be an outstanding success, bringing together almost 550 professionals from across Canada’s pulp and paper and forest products sector for several days of knowledge sharing, innovation, and collaboration. Through a rich program of over 30 sessions with expert presentations, technical sessions, and interactive discussions, participants gained valuable insights into emerging technologies, sustainability strategies, operational efficiencies, and market trends shaping the industry’s future. The virtual format enabled broad participation and meaningful engagement, creating a dynamic environment where new ideas flourished and practical solutions were exchanged. Overall, PaperWeek 2026 reinforced its role as a premier platform for advancing the competitiveness, resilience, and long-term success of Canada’s forest products industry
Kemira will implement a price increase of 10-20% for all AKD (alkyl ketene dimer) wax products, effective immediately or as contracts permit. The adjustment is driven by significantly higher costs across the AKD wax value chain.
The material solutions company UPM has entered into a collaboration with international technology group ANDRITZ to recycle its paper machine clothing. This initiative uses innovative recycling approaches to return used fabrics and felts made from synthetic polymers to the circular economy. This avoids thermal disposal and its associated emissions while reducing the demand for fossil-based raw materials.
Smurfit Westrock today announced earlier this month it will permanently close one of the paper machines at its La Tuque, Quebec, mill. The machine’s annual production capacity of 127,000 tons of solid bleached sulfate (SBS) has faced ongoing scale and cost challenges.
Researchers at the University of Oulu, Finland have developed new high-performance bio-based resins that can replace conventional oil-based materials in composite products — without compromising strength, cost, or industrial scalability.
RDM Group has announced this week the launch of Vincicoat PLUS (V+), a new generation of coated recycled cartonboard designed to deliver increased strength while enabling meaningful packaging weight reduction.
On March 13 and 14, Papest, the Federation of paper manufacturers in the Grand Est and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté regions (eastern France), is organizing the first edition of Paper of the Future (Papier d’Avenir) in Nancy, an event dedicated to discovering the trades and careers in the paper industry. Often overlooked, the paper sector is now innovative, committed to the circular economy, and a major recruiter. It relies on major industrial players with a strong presence in France and Europe.
Valmet has received an order from The Price Companies to deliver a new debarking and chipping line to support increased wood chip supply at one of their operations in Georgia, the USA. The investment enables Price to meet growing demand and strengthen its position as the leader in woodyard operations in North America.
Metsä Group has published its Annual Review for the financial year 1 January–31 December 2025. At the same time, the company released an updated Climate Transition Plan, which outlines Metsä Group’s climate targets and the actions taken to achieve them.
The 4evergreen alliance has published major updates to two cornerstone documents in its Technical Toolbox, supporting Europe’s transition to high‑performance recycling systems under the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).
With a new brand identity, drupa is presenting its future direction at an early stage. Two years before the start of the trade fair, the world's leading trade fair for printing solutions is thus providing an initial glimpse of its conceptual and content-related repositioning.
ABB has signed an agreement with Swedish pulp and paper manufacturer Billerud to modernize Paper Machine 5 at the company’s Gävle mill, one of its key sites for producing liquid packaging board and liner. The contract will bring new automation capabilities, updated hardware, improved quality control and refreshed drive technology to a machine that supports a significant share of Billerud’s global packaging output. The upgrades aim to improve efficiency, strengthen cyber security, reduce energy and material use and build a platform ready for next-generation digital and AI tools.
Holmen is introducing Holmen BOOK Bright, a new, whiter wood‑containing book paper that reproduces colours with clarity and intensity. The paper offers a high level of opacity and can help reduce environmental impact across the book market.
one.five, a Hamburg-based provider of sustainable packaging solutions developed using advanced AI technologies, is supplying the high-barrier paper Bluemorph for the new packaging of the plant-based hard cheese alternative “Old Italian” from vegan cheese manufacturer VANOZZA. With this transition, the product is being offered in paper-stream recyclable packaging in food retail for the first time. In the new packaging made from biological materials, “Old Italian” is available, among others, at REWE Nord.
Sappi Europe will increase prices for its Speciality products by €50-70/t, depending on the grade, effective on deliveries as from 1 April 2026.
