Despite challenging economic conditions and the drop in China's overall imports, Europe's leading recovered fiber exporter, the UK, still succeeded in shipping out larger volumes last year, according a new report from the UK's Confederation of Paper Industries and HM Revenue & Customs.
Combined, UK exports of all grades climbed 4.4% to 4.436 million tonnes in 2014 from 4.248 million tonnes in the previous year. Overseas shipments of corrugated and kraft edged 2.1% higher to 2.458 million tonnes while mixed paper deliveries to customers abroad soared 29.2% to 1.414 million tonnes. These gains more than offset steep declines for the high grades (-34.5% to 103 802 tonnes) and for newspapers and magazines (-21.6% to 460 199 tonnes).
The UK's export performance compensated for a decline in domestic recovered paper usage of 3.2% last year to 3.714 million tonnes. The country's collection volumes edged up 1.4% to 8.014 million tonnes while its imports nosedived 26% to 136,176 tonnes.
Of interest is the permanent closure in late-February of the Aylesford Newsprint paper mill. Based in Kent, the mill consumed around 500,000 tonnes of recovered fiber per year, to produce more than 400,000 tonnes of 100 percent recycled-content newsprint.
