Leading Russian pulp and paper mills may merge during the next several months, in an attempt to avoid bankruptcy.
The Kondopoga mill plant, located in the Karelia region, is currently holding negotiations with the Volga plant, which is located in the Nizhny Novgorod region about the potential deal, according to the general director of Kondopoga Vladimir Bibilov.
This, according to Bibilov, will allow Kondopoga to begin deliveries of raw materials and to resume paper production. Currently the situation at the Kondopoga mill, one of Russia’s largest pulp and paper mills remains comple, as the company’s total debt already exceeded more than 8 billion rubles (USD$240 million).
Among the main creditors of the company are the suppliers of wood and natural gas. The Russian government and in particular Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is aware of the current situation with Kondopoga, considering its merge with another country’s leading pulp and paper producer – the Volga plant
According to governor of the Karelia region Alex Hudilainen, the current problems of the plant could be explained by the decline of demand for newsprint in Russia.
