The application, dated 17 June 2024, follows the company’s public consultation in 2022 to expand the mill by converting it to recycled board and tissue manufacturing, and a successful application in January 2024 to redevelop and expand the Shotton site, with redevelopment work having already commenced following initial applications.
Eren Holdings said its plans would make Shotton Mill one of the UK’s largest and technologically advanced paper mills, with 750,000 tonnes annually of containerboard capacity and 210,000 tonnes of tissue.
The new tissue mill would create hundreds of jobs at Shotton Mill, according to Eren Paper’s application to Flintshire Council, as reported by local newspaper The Leader, which serves Wrexham and Flintshire.
“Eren’s plans for the site will deliver a market leading operation with the newest innovations and technologies in this market,” consultants acting for Eren Paper said in the application.
“This will make this site a flagship exemplar project in the UK and Europe, delivering also significant job creation and improvements in working environments.
“Analysis of the UK paper industry shows that the UK is currently a net importer of both container board products and tissue products, while at the same time being a net exporter of recycled waste paper.
“The proposed development is intended to close both these gaps by increasing production at the site, thereby allowing the use of more recycled paper, with the proposed new cardboard paper production facility using 100% recycled paper.”
A subsidiary of Turkish corrugated board manufacturer Modern Karton, Eren acquired the mill in 2021; at the time, the mill employed around 190, manufacturing newsprint – down from its high of around 530 in the 1990s.
“This represents a large skilled and experienced workforce that Eren Holding intends to retain during the conversion of the site to new product production. Eren Holding has ensured that all existing employees have been retained during the transition to new ownership,” Eren Holding said on its website; this effort has been largely successful, with the company reporting 176 employees as of its December 2023 accounts.
