Ahlstrom, a leader in sustainable fiber-based specialty materials, has signed an agreement to divest its Aspa pulp mill in Sweden to Sweden Timber. The agreement includes the pulp mill and all its operations, and the transaction is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2024.

Aspa pulp mill produces bleached and unbleached softwood kraft pulp. The mill has an annual capacity of approximately 200,000 t and 174 employees

According to Ahlstrom, the transaction is a key step in the company's growth transformation journey, "reinforcing the company’s strategic commitment to sustainable specialty materials."

“We look forward to continuing business and developing Aspa together with the mill’s experienced team. We are committed to continuing to serve existing customers in the future with Aspa’s high-quality pulp,” says Mikael Arvidsson, CEO and Head of Sales at Sweden Timber.

Aspa pulp mill produces two types of softwood pulp: elementary chlorine free (ECF) bleached kraft pulp and unbleached kraft pulp. According to Ahlstrom, about 50 per cent of the production volume is sold in Europe while the remaining volume is delivered to customers across the globe.

ECF bleached kraft pulp is used for applications in hygiene products, printing paper, transparent paper and packaging paper and board. Unbleached kraft pulp is a specialty pulp mainly produced for electrotechnical papers, but can also be used in the production of glass interleaving paper, greaseproof papers, coffee filter paper or cartonboard, Ahlstrom writes on its website.

Sweden Timber is a Swedish wood processing company with assets also in wood composites and papermaking. The company had acquired the Hylte Bruk paper mill from Stora Enso in 2023 and runs one paper machine at the site producing standard and improved newsprint and book paper.

Source: ahlstrom.com