Sweden-based renewable packaging material provider BillerudKorsnäs will invest around $35.28m (SEK260m) to increase its production capacity and improve the quality of sack paper produced at its Skärblacka facility.
The company said that the money will be used in purchasing paper machine 9 and will help it to increase its production capacity from 20,000 t/a to 180 000 t/a.
The company is investing this amount as a part of its growth agenda, 'Selective Growth' for BillerudKorsnäs Business Area Packaging Paper.
BillerudKorsnäs said that the machine produces high quality brown sack papers that can be used for the construction of sacks that are used for packaging cement, other construction minerals and chemicals. The company sells most of its products to European markets.
Apart from this machine, the investment will also include the head box and wire section of the paper machine. The purchases are expected to be carried out next year. This investment is an outcome of the asset review that was conducted by the company.
Commenting on the investment, Packaging Paper SVP Johan Nellbeck said: "We see strong potential for our sack papers in South East Asia, where our sack paper brand QuickFill is a quality leader. In those regions, cement and other construction minerals are very often packed in plastic sacks.
"Sacks made out of our material offer the brand owner large benefits when it comes to production economy, but also when it comes to sustainability and health."
The following investment is a part of the company's efforts to develop its Skärblacka production unit and follows its successful 2012 investments in energy and environment.
