The development comes just months after Leipa's Schwedt mill brought on stream its PM4 recycled lightweight coated (LWC) magazine paper machine (PrintWeek, 12 August).

Managing director and mill director Jaakko Tuomola said that successful trials had been conducted on PM4 for rotogravure, adding that he was optimistic that Leipa would produce rotogravure qualities in the future.

"The temptation is there. The rotogravure market is much trickier, but that is the challenge," said Tuomola.

This would also change the firm's outlook on the UK  market, where it has a 4.5% share of the 9m tonne LWC sector, especially on the back of Polestar's announced Sheffield gravure superplant and Arvato's planned 115m factory in Liverpool.

Schwedt's PM4 came on stream in July this year, and production began in August.

The firm invested 218m (E330m) in the PM4 project for the production of LWC, mainly in the weight range of 48-65gsm, which uses 70-100% recovered fibre.

The move has created 227 jobs at the plant, and an additional 270 in related areas.Leipa's Schwedt mill has also begun plans for a power plant at the 78-hectare site. Tuomola said a letter of intent to build the plant has been issued, which will see the project mainly funded by third-party investment. "This would be a good economical deal for the mill," he said.

The mill would provide its own slurry, which would generate power and steam, with the earliest projected start-up date set at 2007.

Story by Andy Scott