The annual report from the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) noted that pulp and paper experienced a slowdown in 2022 that was particularly pronounced in H2.
Overall consumption of paper and board was down 3.5% year-on-year at 72.5m tonnes “with a steeper decrease at the end of 2022 than previously estimated, as the Eurozone was entering a recession in great part driven by record high energy and raw material prices”.
The energy price crisis caused some mills to temporarily halt production.
The biggest drop was in uncoated mechanical paper, with production down 19.5% to 3.57m tonnes, and consumption falling by 17.4% to 2.65m tonnes.
CEPI described the surprising 4.6% decline in packaging paper and board production as “exceptional”.
“Multi-year trends for pulp and paper manufacturers remain however positive. Packaging paper and board, as a sustainable substitute for fossil-based alternatives, still is one of the sector’s main drivers for growth,” the report stated.
Paper for use in recycling was also down 4.6%, with CEPI pointing to the record high electricity, gas and CO2 prices having a disproportionate impact on paper recycling mills, along with the effect of lower packaging production.
CEPI also highlighted a period of regulatory uncertainty in Europe and noted that “even larger” green investments would be required in the future to meet the EU’s climate ambitions. Last year European paper industry investment increased by 11.1% to €5bn (£4.3bn).
Director general Jori Ringman commented: “Current economic conditions mean that the cost of the projects in which pulp and paper companies are already engaged have increased, while regulatory predictability has decreased. Our ambition as an industry has not, and we will continue to propose affordable and scalable solutions for the EU’s transition towards a circular bioeconomy.”
Nearly 180,000 people are directly employed across 664 European pulp, paper and board companies, with a combined turnover up 21% on 2021 at €115bn – breaching the €100bn barrier for the first time.
The number of companies active in the sector has fallen by 8.8% since 2010.
