Swedish tissue company Essity is divesting its Russian operations. Essity has signed an agreement with a buyer and the transaction has now been approved by the Russian authorities themselves. The transaction is expected to be finalized in the second quarter of 2023. The name of the buyer has not been disclosed. Essity currently operates three production facilities in Russia and employs about 1,300 people.
Essity began work in April 2022 to exit the Russian market and, also in 2022, a write-down of the company’s assets in Russia of about SEK 1.7 billion was made. In 2022, Essity’s net sales in Russia amounted to about 2 percent of the group’s total net sales. The impact on total profits will still be reported when the transaction is finalized, but Essity expects that it will not have a significant financial impact.