International Paper to Explore Strategic Options for Ownership Interest in Ilim Group

The largest investment of the forest industry in Finland – the new Kemi bioproduct mill and the paperboard mill expansion – came into operation as planned on Wednesday 20 September 2023. The operations will start department by department. Pulp deliveries from the new mill to customers will begin in October 2023. “Metsä Group’s products replace fossil materials in people’s daily lives. Pulp and paperboard are used as raw materials for numerous consumer goods, and we are able to produce them in Kemi with considerably lower emissions. Finland needs sustainable investment that creates employment, income and a strong belief in the future,” says Ilkka Hämälä, President and CEO of Metsä Group. The Kemi bioproduct mill produces 1.5 million tonnes of softwood and hardwood pulp annually. It uses zero fossil fuels and will be completely waste-free by 2030.

Packaging Corporation of America reported second quarter 2024 net income of $199 million, and net income of $199 million, excluding special items. Second quarter net sales were $2.1 billion in 2024 and $2.0 billion in 2023. In the Packaging segment, corrugated products shipments per day were up 9.2% over last year’s second quarter and total shipments, with one additional shipping day, were up 10.9%. Containerboard production was 1,281,000 tons, and containerboard inventory was up 16,000 tons compared to the second quarter of 2023 and up 20,000 tons versus the first quarter of 2024. In the Paper segment, sales volume was up 12% compared to the second quarter of 2023 and down (8%) versus the first quarter of 2024. Commenting on reported results, Mark W. Kowlzan, Chairman and CEO, said, “results for the quarter reflect our strong market conditions in the Packaging segment. This drove a new all-time containerboard production record in order to service corrugated products and containerboard demand which grew stronger each month, ending with a new corrugated shipments-per-day record for the month of June. We were also able to build some inventory ahead of what we expect to be a busy second half of the year. Packaging segment prices and mix moved higher from first quarter levels as we continue to implement our announced price increases. Paper segment prices and mix as well as volume came in as expected, and the scheduled outage at our International Falls mill was managed very well. Results also reflect our constant focus on minimizing inflationary cost increases through efficiency and usage initiatives and capital project benefits throughout our mills and converting facilities.”

From takeout food to online shopping, more people are leveraging the safety and convenience of ordering online because of the COVID-19 pandemic. As unprecedented as this moment in time is, consumers’ shifting purchasing habits have a silver lining—people are paying more attention to the sustainability of product packaging. While the pandemic has compounded an environmental crisis, consumers are paying attention to issues of sustainability in a different way and prioritizing the need for greater packaging sustainability. As we navigate this “new normal,” our awareness of just how much we are consuming has sharpened our focus on the need to advance toward a circular economy for a more sustainable world. In navigating the road to greater sustainability in packaging, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Companies and customers must have access to a variety of solutions and be provided with multiple opportunities to make more sustainable choices. How do we gain traction on our journey toward a more circular economy? In a word: collaboration.