The volume of production of corrugating paper in Russia is steadily growing and there is a possibility such growth will continue to be observed in years to come, according to recent statements, made by representatives of producers and some local media reports.
According to a report "Analysis of the corrugated paper market in Russia" which was prepared by a local analyst agency BusinesStat, the production of corrugating paper in Russia for the last 5 years grew by 27.8%
According to the report, for the period of 2016-2020, production increased from 1,55 million to 1,98 million tonnes.
As analysts said, for the reporting period the growth was mainly due to the steady demand for products from domestic manufacturers of corrugated board and corrugated packaging.
The largest increase in the production of corrugated paper was registered in 2020 (+10.4%, or 187.300 to the level of the previous year). In 2020, despite the economic crisis, the production of corrugated cardboard containers increased due to the increased demand for packaging for the delivery of goods, groceries and ready-made food. Moreover, an increase in the output of corrugated paper was related with the growing interest in Russian products from China, where 190.300 tons of corrugated paper were exported in 2020 (compared to only 100 tonnes 2019).
Some papermakers are starting to diversify their production capacities by the increase of production of packaging materials. For example, the Volga pulp and paper mill has recently announced plans to increase the production by packaging paper by 60%, compared to the current figures.
Previously, the main product of the plant was newsprint, the demand for which, however, significantly declined due to the pandemic.
As part of the plans of Volga is increasing the production of paper for corrugated board, focusing on China as the main consumer of products. In addition, the diversification of production was reported by Kondopoga PPM, another leading pulp and paper producer in Russia, which revenue fell in 2020 due to a decrease in demand for newsprint.
By: Eugen Gerden