Fiber line at Fibria's factory in Brazil. Andritz will supply a similar fiber line to Klabin in Brazil.
The large orders received by the Austrian technology group Andritz Group in Brazil and Indonesia also mean good news for the group's machine shops operating in Finland.
“The orders guarantee a good base load for this year in our Finnish units,” says Andritz’s CTO Pulp & Paper Kari Tuominen.
The main production equipment of Klabin, Brazil's largest pulp and paper company, employs Andritz's Savonlinna machine shop in particular, where it manufactures pulp mill scrubbers and components.
“All key components of the production equipment are manufactured in Finland. We have high-quality specialist expertise in Savonlinna, which we have consciously wanted to retain here. Local manufacturing also makes it easier to ensure quality,” emphasizes the Technology Director of the Fiber Line at Andritz Pulp & Paper. Hannu Ramark.
The production of the main equipment for the Klabin pulp mill's fiber line will ensure full employment for the Savonlinna machine shop's current employees until at least the end of the year. The order will also employ designers in Savonlinna and Kotka, as well as Andritz's Brazilian unit.
The Klabin pulp mill delivery consists of wood processing, softwood and hardwood pulp lines and a white liquor plant. The fiber lines will produce a total of 1,5 million tons of short-fiber and long-fiber pulp. The total value of the order is approximately EUR 300 million.
In Indonesia, Andritz will deliver the world's largest recovery boiler to date for OKI Pulp & Paper Mills' new pulp mill. The pulp mill's recovery boiler has a black liquor combustion capacity of approximately 11 tons of dry matter per day, which is approximately half the capacity of any recovery boiler currently in operation.
The Indonesian order will bring work to Finland for both Andritz's project staff and the Varkaus machine shop, where the main equipment for the recovery boiler is manufactured. The order is worth approximately EUR 120 million.
Both factories will start operating in 2016.
Finland and pulp still in a key position
Technology Director who has worked in Brazil for the past few years Olavi Pikka believes that Andritz's previous references and specialized expertise influenced the order placement.
"We have produced several complete mills for the South American market, which operate cost-effectively. We also have competent, experienced local personnel there close to the customer. Finland, on the other hand, still has competitive pulp expertise, which guarantees reliable deliveries."
The technical innovations developed by Andritz have also influenced the choices.
“Thanks to the technological solutions we have developed, wood can be processed efficiently and converted into high-quality chips, which contributes to improving the availability of pulp mills,” Råmark adds.
Andritz is reasonably confident about the future of the forest industry, although the market is not currently expected to see significant growth.
“Large pulp mill projects are underway in Asia and South America, while in North America and Europe the focus is on investments that open bottlenecks in existing mills and on energy efficiency investments,” says Tuominen.
“Pulp companies are looking for new options to improve wood yield or develop bioenergy solutions. We must also be involved in these projects to continue to offer reliable and more efficient technologies,” says Råmark.
Solutions related to energy and resource efficiency are being closely studied at Andritz.
“Wood dust replacing fossil fuels or fuel obtained by gasifying biomass, the utilization of side streams for the needs of various industries or the use of polysulfide are areas where the development phase has moved to implementation,” says Andritz’s White Liquor Plant Product Group Director. Keijo Savolainen.
A healthy core business is a prerequisite for future innovations.
“If pulp or paper production is not on a sound basis, then there is no room to invest in new bioeconomy projects,” says Råmark.
In addition to its expertise in the forestry sector, Finland is also an important market area for Andritz.
"Finland is especially important for the development of softwood pulp production technology. Education in the field is at a high level, and product and technology development is carried out with the help of various partners. Finnish forest industry companies operate worldwide, so customer relationships start in Finland," says Pikka.
Text: Olli Manninen
Photo: Andritz
