Maxau paper mill becomes part of Schwarz Produktion in Germany

The sale of the Maxau paper mill at Karlsruhe in Germany to Schwarz Produktion was completed at the beginning of March by Finland’s Stora Enso as it continues to focus on growth in renewable products in packaging, building solutions and biomaterials innovations.

Schwarz Produktion produces packaging and high-quality food for Schwarz Group retailers Lidl and Kaufland, all part of the diverse Schwarz Group, which employs 550,000 people in 32 countries and has sales of more than €130 billion a year..

The €210 million deal, originally announced in September 2022, is part of Stora Enso’s plan to divest four of its five paper mills in Europe.

The plan was concluded earlier this year when it signed an agreement to sell its paper mill at Hylte but discontinued the Anjala mill divestment process. The sale of the Nymölla paper mill in Sweden was completed in January with ownership transferred to

Magnus Groth, chief executive of Essity, adds: “Sustainability is integrated into Essity’s strategy for long-term profitable growth. We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint and achieving net zero emissions by 2050. This partnership with Voith is yet another concrete example of this.”

PPL asked Naomi Keitel, global communications manager at Voith Paper, for more information about the processes being developed. Keitel said that the pilot machine will cover the entire paper making process from raw material processing up to the reel, allowing full development of the opti-mised process. “Due to non-disclosure agreements, it is not possible to describe the concept in more detail at the moment. Further information will follow,” she said.

Sylvamo. Stora Enso said the Maxau divestment would reduce its yearly sales by about €385m.

The Maxau mill has capacity to produce 530,000 tonnes of SC (supercalendered) paper a year. In 2022, there were plans to connect the mill’s combined heat-and-power plant to the local district heating system that would generate 50,000MWh a year, providing a carbon dioxide reduction of 11,500 tons a year. Other Stora Enso mills have similar arrangements.

In addition to mineral water and soft drinks, Schwarz Produktion companies also produce chocolate, dried fruit, baked goods, coffee and ice cream. It operates three plastic and recycling plants that are central to a PET materials cycle.