Stora Enso, Tornator and WWF Finland have launched a three-year cooperation to improve the condition of Finland’s freshwaters forest streams and to conserve and protect their species. The first voluntary work will take place in summer 2022.

The aim of the cooperation is to restore habitats in small waterbodies, mainly in forests, closer to their natural state. This will strengthen the biodiversity of Finnish nature. Stora Enso, Tornator and WWF Finland will identify suitable restoration sites in areas owned by Tornator. Stora Enso’s and Tornator’s employees will have a chance to participate in the practical voluntary work together with WWF experts.

Through the joint restoration work their aim is to conserve and restore freshwaters such as streams and rivers, improve habitats for aquatic species, and remove migration barriers such as culverts that function as waterways under road banks. Culverts that are installed too high block trout and other freshwater species from reaching their spawning grounds.

Streams close to their natural state are important habitats for forest and aquatic species. In addition to migratory fish, endangered water insects, mosses, crayfish, and mussels, among others, depend on free-flowing waters. At the same time, many forest species benefit from the improved condition of freshwaters.

The new cooperation is part of Stora Enso’s biodiversity programme in Finland

In Finland, streams that have biggest restoration potential are located in forests. It is therefore only natural that Tornator, Finland’s largest private forest owner, and Stora Enso partner with WWF in this new initiative.

Managing forest biodiversity is an important part of Stora Enso’s and Tornator’s daily forest operations. Cooperation with WWF Finland is part of Stora Enso’s and Tornator’s biodiversity programmes.

“Our biodiversity programme in Finland brings together nature management measures that improve habitats for endangered species and water protection. The cooperation for forest streams is a new step in our biodiversity work and a great continuation of our long-term partnership with WWF Finland and Tornator. Working for healthy forests and water systems is a matter close to the hearts of our forestry professionals, and we are already looking forward to the start of the joint restoration work,” says Pekka Kallio-Mannila, Head of Sustainability, Stora Enso Forest Finland.

The partnership will also help increase awareness among private forest owners about the need to protect freshwater species and habitats. WWF will provide instructions on the identification and removal of migration barriers so that forest owners can continue restoration work on their own land after the project is completed.

“We are delighted to be working with two major Finnish forestry companies, as they have excellent potential to improve the biodiversity of freshwaters. Together, we can make a significant positive change that would not be possible without business cooperation,” says Liisa Rohweder, Secretary General, WWF Finland.

“Stream restoration on Tornator-owned sites will make the Tornator biodiversity programme more effective in combination with its other objectives, such as peatland restoration and water protection measures,” says Heikki Myöhänen, Environmental Manager, Tornator.

The new business cooperation is part of WWF Finland’s broader long-term work to improve freshwater environments to achieve good ecological condition of small waterbodies and freshwaters in Finland by 2030.

Photo: Pekka Kallio-Mannila, Head of Sustainability, Stora Enso Forest Finland

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Just under two years ago, Setra Hasselfors became the first sawmill within the Setra Group to invest in Valutec TC drying technology. Now they are investing in new TC wood drying kilns for both Hasselfors and the sawmill in Heby, both located in Sweden.

“The properties of the TC continuous kiln fit well into the Setra Greenness philosophy. They offer the precision of the batch kiln in combination with high capacity and efficient heat recovery. Another bonus with it is that we don’t get tied to one batch size if we’d like to switch to larger ones in the future to reduce handling and further increase drying capacity,” says Jonas Fintling, Site Manager at Setra Hasselfors.

Setra Hasselfors in Sweden is a respected spruce sawmill established in 1908. In 2021, it produced approximately 345,000 m³ and the products are delivered to customers in Europe, the USA and Australia. The investment will increase the sawmill’s drying capacity by approximately 150,000 m³, which enables a planned production increase to approximately 500,000 m³. It will also be the first sawmill in Scandinavia with two TC kilns in one and the same sawmill.

The swedish sawmill Setra Heby was established in 1915 and 260,000 m³ was sawn in 2020. A large part of the production goes to Setra’s CLT and glulam factory in Långshyttan but the sawmill also exports dried-down goods mainly to France and Germany. The investment in a TC continuous kiln with a capacity of approximately 145,000 m³ is being made partly to replace older kilns and partly to increase drying capacity. With the new dryer in place, Setra Heby will have a drying capacity of approximately 320,000 m³.

“We looked at different types of kilns and the TC kiln was best suited for the flow we have in Heby. It’s also good from a sustainability perspective, as with the same energy consumption, we will increase our drying capacity”, says Jan-Erik Johansson Vik, Site Manager at Setra Heby. He adds:

“The price is important when making an investment but you mustn’t fixate on it. With Valutec, we are getting a secure and developing partner who offers good service and delivery security.”

The kiln in Heby will begin assembly during the summer and in Hasselfors, assembly will begin in February next year. Jon Lindberg, Sales Manager at Valutec is looking forward to delivery:

“We already cooperate well with Setra and I look forward to us continuing to develop their drying capacity together.”

The TC kilns are delivered with Valutec Valmatics 4.0 control system, which enables the TC kiln functions to be utilised fully. Valmatics 4.0 is the only control system that combines simulator technology with adaptive control and which enables optimisation of capacity, quality and energy consumption simultaneously.

With these investments, Setra Group is following a clear trend in the world of sawmills. The new generation of Valutec TC kilns has been sold worldwide in recent years, opening up new markets for the company.

“What lies behind this technological leap is thousands of hours of development where we studied, evaluated, tested and invented new things in all parts of a sort of lumber kiln that, in its first form, was used as early as 1927”, says Robert Larsson, CEO of Valutec.

The big improvement is in the way to control temperature and airspeed individually in different zones using integrated simulator technology. Thanks to its development, the sawmill can choose with a high degree of freedom the dimensions of the lumber to be dried, something that has not previously been possible in a continuous kiln.

TC is the abbreviation of the Swedish for “cross circulation”. The principle is based on the lumber package being fed lengthways through zones in which the air circulates laterally across the drying channel. This enables the separate regulation of the climate in different zones according to a schedule that comes very close to the ideal schedule of a batch kiln.

For additional information, please contact:
Jon Lindberg, Sales Manager
Valutec
+46 910-879 50
jon.lindberg@valutec.se

Robert Larsson, CEO
Valutec
+46 910-879 50
robert.larsson@valutec.se

Jan-Erik Johansson Vik, Site Manager
Setra Heby
+46 224-368 00
jan-erik.johanssonvik@setragroup.com

Jonas Fintling, Site Manager
Setra Hasselfors
+46 585-485 00
jonas.fintling@setragroup.com

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Thanks to the renewable energy generated at the plants of Magnon Green Energy, an energy subsidiary of the Ence Group, it has been possible to avoid the emission of more than 335,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere last year.

In the Magnon plants, located in Andalusia, Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura, renewable energy is generated daily from biomass. In this process, the agroforestry remains of the areas close to each facility are valued, which, otherwise, could become an environmental problem, among other reasons, due to a possible uncontrolled burning due to their accumulation in the field.

This technology contributes to providing stability to the electrical mix thanks to its manageability, a characteristic that distinguishes it from other renewable energies, which are completely dependent on the weather. Thus, hand in hand with electricity production technologies such as biomass, Spain will achieve the decarbonisation objectives set at a European level, while at the same time advancing on the path towards a fair energy transition.

Magnon, therefore, is an important actor in the achievement of the sustainable development objectives established within the framework of the 2030 Agenda, especially for those focused on the production of clean and non-polluting energy, climate action and climate change. of a productive model and, in the social field, to the generation of quality employment and the promotion of equal opportunities.

In fact, biomass generation is an important piece in the fight against the so-called “emptied Spain”. Thanks to the Magnon plants, around 6,650 direct, indirect and induced jobs have been created in rural areas – according to data provided by the Association of Renewable Energy Companies (APPA) – Sustainable and quality employment, which prevents the depopulation and de-industrialization of the rural world, especially in the 5 provinces in which it operates – Huelva, Córdoba, Jaén, Ciudad Real and Badajoz.

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Stora Enso has divested its three corrugated packaging plants in Russia. The Company’s Lukhovitsy, Arzamas and Balabanovo packaging plants have been divested to local management.

Stora Enso’s assessment is that due to the uncertainties in the Russian market, local ownership and operation will provide a more sustainable long-term solution for these businesses and their respective employees.

The transaction will have no material impact on Stora Enso’s annual sales and Operational EBIT. Due to reduced business prospects for these businesses, an impairment loss of EUR 35 million was recorded in the first quarter result. The additional loss on the transaction under IFRS will be approximately EUR 55 million, consisting mainly of currency translation adjustments to be recorded at the closing date. The expenses are considered as items affecting comparability.

The divested sites are located in Lukhovitsy, Arzamas and Balabanovo employing approximately 620 people and have a total annual capacity of 395 million m² of corrugated packaging. The sites primarily produce corrugated packaging for grocery, home improvement, confectionery and pet food segments in the domestic Russian market.

Stora Enso announced on 2 March 2022 that it would stop all production and sales in Russia until further notice. On 25 April, Stora Enso announced the divestment of its two sawmills and forest operations in Russia to local management.

For further information, please contact:
Carl Norell
Press officer
tel. +46 72 241 0349

Investor enquiries:
Anna-Lena Åström
SVP Investor Relations
Tel. +46 70 210 7691

Part of the global bioeconomy, Stora Enso is a leading provider of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials, wooden construction and paper, and one of the largest private forest owners in the world. We believe that everything that is made from fossil-based materials today can be made from a tree tomorrow. Stora Enso has approximately 22,000 employees and our sales in 2021 were EUR 10.2 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm AB (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA as ADRs (SEOAY). storaenso.com

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