Metsä Fibre, part of Metsä Group, has signed machinery supply agreements for the new Kemi bioproduct mill with Raumaster Oy and Raumaster Paper Oy. Raumaster Oy will supply the machinery used in the chip and bark processing area, the conveyor systems for the gasifier and recovery boiler, and most of the conveyors for lime, lime mud processing and causticising. Raumaster Paper Oy will supply automated bale loading and unloading equipment for the port warehouse to be constructed in Ajos harbour in Kemi. The deliveries have a high degree of Finnish origin, approximately 70%.
”We have set high targets for the material, energy and environmental efficiency for the Kemi bioproduct mill. Only the best available technique is being procured for the mill. This is why we require our partners to supply technically reliable solutions and have understanding of our production needs. The solutions provided by Raumaster Oy and Raumaster Paper Oy meet these requirements. We are well positioned to build together an efficient and reliable bioproduct mill in Kemi,” says Jari-Pekka Johansson, Director of the bioproduct mill project at Metsä Fibre.
”Raumaster and Raumaster Paper are pleased with the opportunity to participate in an important Finnish project such as this. Raumaster’s solid insight into customer needs, as well as its machinery and process competence and reputation as a reliable Finnish machinery supplier and partner helped it secure the agreement. The value of the deliveries and the contribution to employment in design, production and installations are significant to both companies”, state Petri Lounasaho, Manager, Woodhandling Division, Raumaster Oy, and Pekka Leino, CEO, Raumaster Paper Oy, with one voice.
Metsä Group’s bioproduct mill project in Kemi, Finland is progressing according to plan and earthworks and piling works are currently being carried out. Around 300 people and about 130 different companies are working at the site. The bioproduct mill project’s degree of Finnish origin is estimated to be high, about 70%. During the construction phase, the mill’s employment effect is estimated at nearly 10,000 person-years, of which more than 50% will be done in Kemi. The total number of different employees working during the construction phase is estimated to be about 15,000. The investment will secure the 250 jobs at the current Kemi mill for the coming decades. Through its direct value chain, the new bioproduct mill will employ around 2,500 people in Finland, some 1,500 more than the employment effect of the current Kemi pulp mill.
Totalling EUR 1.6 billion, the investment in Metsä Group’s Kemi bioproduct mill is the largest in the history of the Finnish forest industry. The Kemi bioproduct mill, which will operate entirely fossil free and with a high degree of environmental, energy and material efficiency, will produce an annual 1.5 million tonnes of softwood and hardwood pulp, as well as many other bioproducts. The mill’s electricity self-sufficiency rate will be 250% and this will further strengthen Metsä Group’s position as a major electricity producer relying on renewable Finnish fuels. The new bioproduct mill will be started up in the third quarter of 2023.
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