Metsä Tissue will install a Valmet-supplied TM at its Mariestad mill in Sweden

Metsä Tissue is to boost its production capacity after investing in a Valmet-supplied tissue machine to be installed at its Mariestad mill in Sweden.

Production on the tissue machine is estimated to begin during the second half of the year 2025, and once up and running the total production capacity of the machine will be 70,000tpy, increasing the mill’s total production capacity to 145,000tpy.

The new tissue machine is part of the company’s €370m Mariestad tissue mill expansion and modernisation project.

In 2022, Metsä Tissue also received an environmental permit for its mill expansion, and it said the energy consumption of paper production at the site will be reduced by 30% with the new paper machine.

The company added that the investment will also reduce carbon dioxide emissions in accordance with its sustainability goals, which include committing to make its mills fossil free by 2030.

Esa Paavolainen, Vice President, Projects, Metsä Tissue, said: “With the new tissue paper machine, we are increasing the supply of locally produced sustainable fresh fibre based tissue papers to the Scandinavian markets and by that enabling reliable local supplies of high quality tissues to consumers.

“The new paper machine technology brings great environmental benefits. We are able to diminish our water consumed in the paper manufacturing process by 50% as well as the energy saving reductions.”

The company added that the plant’s expansion is focused on sustainable fresh fibre production, meaning that the total percentage of fresh fibre-based products manufactured at the mill will be 80% when the expansion is completed in the second half of 2025.

Metsä Tissue’s Mariestad mill produces tissue paper products sold under the brands Serla, Lambi and Katrin and customers’ private label products.

After the expansion the mill will have three tissue paper machines.