TissueFirst

Fibre Excellence: Management Team Indicates It Is "Awaiting the State's Response to Its Proposals to Save the French Paper Industry"

Time is running out. When questioned by MPs during this week’s Question Time, the French Minister for Industry, Sébastien Martin, expressed his regret at the absence of “an industrial investor” in the sole bid to take over Fibre Excellence (FE). This bid is being led by the current management team, headed by Jean-François Guillot. In a Press Release received this Friday, June 12, and which we are publishing in full, FE outlines its perspective on the situation. The Toulouse Commercial Court is scheduled to rule on the site's future on June 17.

François HENIN

SCA updates MTN programme and publishes prospectus

Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA (publ) on May 8, 2018 established a Medium Term Note program (MTN) with a loan framework amounting to SEK 8 billion. In connection with the annual update in 2026, SCA’s Board of Directors has resolved to increase the borrowing limit from SEK 8 billion to SEK 12 billion to ensure flexibility and diversification in the financing.

François HENIN

Reduced logging delivers limited climate benefits at high cost

Proposals to reduce forestry activity and increase protected forest areas have become an important part of the European forestry debate. However, according to a new impact assessment, such measures risk leading to lower production, tens of thousands of lost jobs, and higher societal costs – without delivering any climate benefits.

François HENIN

The Navigator Company launches gCELL, its new pulp brand

The Navigator Company has announced the launch of gCELL, a new brand for its pulp portfolio, aligned with the differentiation and value creation it brings to the global pulp market. With gCELL, Navigator brings its pulp business under a unified and distinctive identity rooted in more than 70 years of expertise in Eucalyptus globulus pulp production.

François HENIN

Södra and Viking Analytics Sign Enterprise-Wide Framework Agreement for Advanced AI-Based Vibration Analytics

Based on documented results at Södra Värö, Södra has decided to scale Viking Analytics’ AI platform, MultiViz, across the entire group. The framework agreement covers 3,650 sensors deployed across the mills in Värö, Mörrum, and Mönsterås, marking the next step in Södra’s commitment to data-driven, proactive maintenance.

François HENIN

Metsä granted funding to 22 new biodiversity projects

22 new projects across Finland focusing on strengthening biodiversity and ecological restoration were selected for Metsä Group’s Funding programme for nature projects. A total of EUR 300 000 was granted. This year, several accepted projects combined concrete nature management measures, environmental education, and community involvement.

François HENIN

Safety First: Senior Safety Officers from CPM and IPM Honored at Heat Awareness Event

Al Ahalia Hospital recently organized a Beat the Heat Awareness Campaign, with Crown Paper Mill (CPM) and Ittihad Paper Mill (IPM) participating as special invitees.

François HENIN

Cristián Infante of Arauco named Fastmarkets Latin America CEO of the Year 2026

Fastmarkets, the leading price reporting agency for commodities market pricing, news, and analysis, has named Cristián Infante of Arauco as Latin America CEO of the Year 2026. The award will be presented during the annual Fastmarkets Forest Products Latin America Conference, taking place in Brazil from August 10–12.

Stephane RICHARD

WEPA and Epyr inaugurate thermal energy storage unit at the Troyes site

The WEPA Group and the start-up Epyr have inaugurated France’s first thermal energy storage unit dedicated to the electrification of industrial heat at the WEPA site in Troyes. The inauguration was also attended by François Baroin, Mayor of Troyes and President of Troyes Champagne Métropole.

François HENIN

SOFIDEL confirmed on CDP’S supplier engagement leaderboard for its climate action commitment

The prestigious “A” rating in the 2025 Supplier Engagement Assessment (SEA) recognizes the effectiveness of the Group’s supply chain decarbonization strategies

François HENIN

ABTCP 2026 places bioeconomy at the center of the pulp and paper industry’s strategy

ABTCP (Brazilian Pulp and Paper Technical Association) in partnership with IPEF (Institute for ForestResearch and Studies), and TAPPI (Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry), will host ABTCP 2026 – 58th Pulp and Paper International Congress and Exhibition, from October 6 to 8 in São Paulo, at the Transamerica Expo Center.

Stephane RICHARD

Next-generation Valmet DNAe DCS to strengthen gas boiler operations at Lenzing in Austria

Valmet’s long-time customer Lenzing AG, an Austrian global leader in dissolving wood pulp and regenerated cellulose fibers, is upgrading their Lenzing production site by incorporating a complete Valmet DNAe Distributed Control System (DCS) to the 1K6 gas boiler. The new system will replace an obsolete third-party system, enabling state-of-the-art DNAe technology with long-term availability, highest cybersecurity standards, improved reliability, and future-ready platform capabilities. As a mission-critical solution, it ensures continued safe, secure, and high-performance plant operations.

François HENIN

Valmet’s flexible optimization suite accelerates process performance

Valmet introduces the Valmet DNAe Optimization Suite, a scalable software suite of optimization applications designed to improve plant performance and operational efficiency. It can be delivered to process plants using control systems supplied by Valmet as well as those from other providers.

François HENIN

1.44 GWh in energy savings with FabriCare

The IBS Paper Performance Group, technology leader in paper machine optimization, has successfully started up a traversing FabriCare ultra-high-pressure cleaning system on a packaging paper machine. Following a comprehensive audit of the vacuum systems, the existing standard wire suction system was replaced with FabriCare. This measure eliminated the need for a 180 kW vacuum pump entirely, including the associated maintenance and spare part costs. The result: enormous energy savings of 1.44 GWh per year - while maintaining or even improving product quality and a return on investment in just a few months.

François HENIN

Fibre Excellence: Management submits takeover bid with several conditions precedent; a shareholders' agreement must be finalized by June 17

The management of the Fibre Excellence (FE) group submitted a takeover bid to the Toulouse Commercial Court on June 1. The company has been under court-ordered receivership since April 27. "Having received no external offers to date, the company has decided to commit itself both to its employees and to the long-term viability of the wood and paper industry, as well as to ensuring France's sovereignty over a product as essential as pulp. This offer aims to build a sustainable solution for the operations of all its industrial and forestry entities. Convinced of the future of combined pulp and power production in France, management aims to ensure the profitability necessary to preserve the group, which contributes to the local economy, employs nearly 700 people, and generates some 10,000 indirect jobs in the forestry-wood-paper sector,” explains the press release received this afternoon.

François HENIN

Suzano invests R$25 million to enhance efficiency and sustainability at its Três Lagoas mill

Suzano, the world’s largest pulp producer, will invest R$25 million to enhance operations at its second mill in Três Lagoas, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, by installing a new oxidized white liquor (OWL) plant. Expected to begin operating in May, the new plant will boost production efficiency and reduce raw material consumption.

Stephane RICHARD

Tissue World returns to Istanbul for 2026

Informa has confirmed that Tissue World Istanbul will return for 2026, taking place on 18–19 November at the Istanbul Congress Center, following a well-received edition in 2024.

Stephane RICHARD

Metsä Fibre once again achieves EcoVadis Platinum rating

Metsä Fibre, part of Metsä Group, has once again been awarded the highest Platinum rating by EcoVadis. The company ranks among the top one percent of companies assessed globally in the pulp, paper and board industry – a position it has held since 2019.

François HENIN

Metsä Group inaugurates the world’s most modern tissue mill in Mariestad, Sweden

Metsä Group marked the inauguration of its expanded and modernised tissue paper mill in Mariestad, Sweden, on 26 May. The opening ceremony was conducted by external representatives together with Metsä Group and Metsä Tissue leadership.

François HENIN

Valmet to deliver recovery boiler upgrade to improve the safety and reliability of Sappi Saiccor Mill in South Africa

Valmet has been selected by Sappi Southern Africa to deliver a full EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) package for the replacement of recovery boiler components at the Saiccor Mill in South Africa. This upgrade of critical boiler parts will improve operational safety, reduce the risk of unplanned downtime and improve overall reliability of the mill.

François HENIN

Valmet’s new stationary lime cooler improves lime kiln energy efficiency at Heinzel Pöls pulp mill in Austria

Valmet will deliver a new stationary lime cooler for Heinzel Pöls pulp mill in Austria. The new cooler significantly improves the lime kiln’s energy efficiency compared to the existing rotary cooler, reduces maintenance needs, and enables the capacity increase of the existing lime kiln.

François HENIN

Valmet’s new R&D program Industrial NEXUS advances industrial renewal through an ecosystem focused on digital technologies and operating models

Valmet is launching a research and development program Industrial NEXUS to drive industrial renewal in Finland through digital technologies and further strengthen the appeal of industrial careers together with the program’s ecosystem partners. Business Finland has granted EUR 15 million in funding for the Industrial NEXUS program and is also preparing to fund Valmet’s ecosystem projects with EUR 40 million. Valmet will invest EUR 55 million in the program over the next five years. Through this investment, the company advances its technology vision and drives growth. The estimated global export potential of the program is EUR 6.5 billion by 2035.

François HENIN

Stories that never end": Regina launches video podcast chronicling sixty years of italian cycling

On the occasion of the 109th edition of the Giro d’Italia, for which Sofidel is an official sponsor through its Regina brand, the Porcari-based paper group presents 7 episodes featuring a journey through memory, historic rivalries, and the evolution of the cycling world.

François HENIN

Georgia‑Pacific announces plans to expand premium tissue capacity

To better meet growing customer and consumer demand for premium bath tissue and paper towels, Georgia-Pacific today announced that it has begun final engineering and planning for additional structured paper machines and associated converting equipment. The company expects to shorten project schedules and optimize capital deployment by leveraging existing site infrastructure and is evaluating its facilities in the central and western portions of the U.S. Site selections will be announced at a later date.

Stephane RICHARD