The business, part of Metsä Group, said in May that it was going to explore possibilities to increase folding boxboard capacity in Finland or Sweden in order to support its customers’ growth and to strengthen its service capability.

The pre-engineering phase will include technical design, design of infrastructure and logistics solutions, and tendering for the main equipment.

As part of the pre-engineering, an environmental impact assessment and an environmental permit process will be launched. The company estimates that a possible investment decision could be made in 2024 at the earliest.

Metsä Board said the pre-engineering for the new folding boxboard mill is based on fossil-free production and “world-class” resource and production efficiency.

“Thanks to the best available technology, the consumption of raw materials, energy and water per tonne of folding boxboard produced would be significantly lower when compared with the existing mills,” the company stated.

“The product concept would benefit from Metsä Board’s long-term development work in the production of premium lightweight paperboards.”

Metsä Group is responsible for Metsä Board’s wood procurement. Metsä Board produces pulps used in the paperboard production, or buys them from the associate company Metsä Fibre, which is also part of Metsä Group and produces high-quality softwood market pulp.

“The investment, when decided, is in line with Metsä Board’s strategy to grow in fibre-based materials and renew our industrial operations,” said Metsä Board CEO Mika Joukio.

“Our ambition is to have the world’s most resource-efficient mill, cutting-edge competitiveness and a product concept that enables carbon footprint reduction.

“Demand for packaging made from renewable raw materials and replacing plastic will continue to grow. We want to meet this demand with more sustainable packaging solutions that promote the circular economy.”

Metsä Board has 2,400 staff and in 2021 it achieved sales of €2.1bn (£1.84bn). The wider Metsä Group has sales of around €6bn and employs 9,500 people in 30 countries.