Kondopoga PPM, one of Russia’s leading pulp and paper producers, which is part of Karelia Pulp Holding, plans to significantly expand and diversify its range in years to come. This will be achieved on the basis of a recent agreement, was signed by the company with Sberbank during the recent St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
Based on the agreement, Sberbank will allow Kondopoga PPM to start a more intensive diversification of its production, which, so far, has been primarily focusing on the production of newsprint. According to the General Director of Karelia Pulp LLC Yuri Aivazov, «Global newspaper market is shrinking, as media is going digital, so the overall consumption of newsprint is decreasing. In this regard, we find promising markets for other types of products, for example, A4 paper for printing. The demand for such paper significantly exceeds the volume of its supply. In addition, if you compare our paper with the products of other manufacturers, then our products does not contain chemicals. It is environmentally friendly and, importantly, there is a good price advantage».
The manager believes that in the future, the share of newsprint in the total structure of production of the mill will be no more than 25%. In addition to printing paper, the plant produces other types of products, including wrapping paper. Its share already reaches 25-50% per month, depending on orders. Special attention will also be paid to the production of commercial types of pulp. The growth in demand for pulp will allow the company to start a more active expansion in this market. For this purpose, the company will conduct a large-scale modernization of its production facilities.
The volume of investments as a result of the agreement has not been disclosed. Successful implementation of the agreement will allow Kondopoga PPM to expand its product line and create flexible production that quickly responds to the environment of both Russian and foreign markets. The PPM modernization project implies maintaining the same number of jobs while increasing the efficiency of production processes. In addition, the environmental impact on the nature of Karelia will be reduced.