In January-February, Poninkivska Cardboard and Paper Mill-Ukraine (PCPM-Ukraine, Khmelnytsky region), a major Ukrainian corrugated cardboard producer, increased its output of corrugated packaging by almost 30% compared to the same period in 2022, to 12.41 million square meters.
According to Ukrpapir Association statistics provided to Interfax-Ukraine, the mill is still among the top three producers of corrugated packaging after Kyiv Cardboard and Paper Mill and Trypillia Packaging Mill, and is still the fastest growing.
As reported, according to data collected by the association from the industry’s major enterprises, a total of 78.5 million square meters of cardboard boxes were produced in Ukraine over two months, down only 0.6% from the almost pre-war January-February period last year.
According to UkrPapir, Poninkivska KBF-Ukraine produced a total of UAH 417.44 million worth of products in two months, up 27.9% year-on-year.
In physical terms, paper production also increased by 21.6% to 107 tons and production of containerboard by 12.4% to 11.54 thousand tons.
Poninkivske Mill (formerly Poninkivske Cardboard and Paper Mill), once the largest producer of school notebooks, now has one main production line – paper and cardboard, producing mainly corrugated cardboard and corrugated packaging, as well as wrapping and waste paper.
The mill is part of the United Cardboard Company-Ukraine (UCC, Lutsk), whose production assets include, among others, Lutsk KBF-Ukraine (Volyn region), which produced 8.8 thousand tons of cardboard in January-February (according to Ukrpapir), up 18.7%, including 5.76 thousand tons of containerboard (+8.2%).
As reported, in 2022, Poninkivska KBF-Ukraine produced products worth UAH 2 billion 446 million, up 6.5% year-on-year.
Production of paper and cardboard in Ukraine in January-May of this year decreased by 44.7% compared to the same period in 2021 – to 198.2 thousand tons, corrugated packaging – by 57%, to 126.9 million sq. m, according to the statistics of the association “UkrPapir”.
According to the statistics provided by the association to the Interfax-Ukraine agency, if in January of this year the production of paper and cardboard lagged behind last year by 4.6%, and corrugated boxes exceeded by 3.5%, then already in January-March, taking into account suspension of many enterprises with the beginning of a full-scale war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, the production of these products decreased by 44% and 54%, respectively.
At the same time, some of the enterprises that stopped work at the beginning of the war never resumed it – in particular, due to the damage received in Rubizhne, the largest Ukrainian manufacturer of corrugated packaging, the Rubezhnoye Cardboard and Container Plant, stopped working (but its “daughter” in the Kyiv region – Trypilsky packing plant).
According to information in the disclosure system of the National Commission for Securities and the Stock Market (NKTSBFR), a remote extraordinary meeting of the plant’s shareholders is scheduled for July 4 with the issue of transferring the location of the Rubezhsky CPC legal entity to Kyiv.
According to UkrPapir, the damaged Rogan cardboard factory in the Kharkiv region has not resumed work (and does not plan to).
From the producers of corrugated packaging, Dunapak Tavria LLC, located in the Kherson region, also does not work (it produced boxes for Novaya Poshta – IF), and the Mena Pak company in the Chernihiv region, according to information available to the association, was able to resume work in May.
Zmievskaya paper mill (Kharkiv region) after three months of forced downtime in May reported the production of 1863 tons of recycled paper against 783 tons in May 2021.
At the same time, after the February suspension of production, the industry leader Kyiv Cardboard and Paper Mill has been operating since March (in terms of the production of corrugated packaging last year – the second after Rubezhansky CPC), Zhydachevsky Pulp and Paper (Lvov region) and Izmail Cardboard (Odessa region), Malinsky paper factory and “Papir-Mal” (Zhytomyr region)
In addition, according to statistics, the Lviv Cardboard and Paper Company did not stop working, maintaining the output of paper and cardboard in January-May at the level of last year, Poninkovskaya (Khmelnytsky region) and Lutsk (Volyn region) cardboard and paper factories, Kokhavinskaya paper mill (Lviv region).
As reported, in 2021, the production of paper and cardboard in Ukraine increased by 9.8% by 2020, to 898.2 thousand tons, corrugated boxes – by 5.9% to 752.9 million square meters.
Association “UkrPapir” unites 35 enterprises and companies, in particular 20 manufacturers of cardboard and paper products and printing enterprises, 11 distributors, two suppliers and suppliers of waste paper.
Rubizhne cardboard and packaging mill (Luhansk region), a leading Ukrainian manufacturer of cardboard packaging, in January-July 2021, taking into account the products of the subsidiary Trypilsky packing plant (Kyiv region), produced 157 million square meters of corrugated boxes, which is 13.7% more year-over-year.
According to the statistical data of the UkrPapir association provided to Interfax-Ukraine, Rubizhne cardboard and packaging mill slowed down the increase in the output of these products compared to the same period in 2020 (in January-June 2021 it was 17.1%, in January-May some 11.8%) and consolidated its leadership in Ukraine.
During this period, the mills in quantity terms increased the production of components for corrugated board (cardboard and corrugated paper) by 14.1%, to 138,330 tonnes.
At the same time, the total volume of commercial products of the two plants in monetary terms increased by 40.6%, to UAH 3.068 billion.
Rubizhne cardboard and packaging mill (Luhansk region), a leading Ukrainian manufacturer of cardboard packaging, in January-June 2021, taking into account the products of the subsidiary Trypilsky packing plant (Kyiv region), produced 135.15 million square meters of corrugated boxes, which is 17.1% more year-over-year.
According to the statistical data of the UkrPapir association provided to Interfax-Ukraine, Rubizhne cardboard and packaging mill accelerated the increase in the output of these products a little more compared to the same period in 2020 (in January-April 2021 it was 9.4%, in January-May some 11.8%) and consolidated its leadership in Ukraine.
During this period, the mills in quantity terms increased the production of components for corrugated board (cardboard and corrugated paper) by 14.8%, to 118,840 tonnes.
At the same time, the total volume of commercial products of the two plants in monetary terms increased by 37.5%, to UAH 2.542 billion.
CORRUGATED PACKAGING, OUTPUT, RUBIZHNE, RUBIZHNE CARDBOARD MILL
Grigeo, one of the leading cardboard and wood board manufacturers in the Baltic states, which owns the Ukrainian corrugated packaging manufacturer PJSC Mena Paсk (Mena, Chernihiv region), has attracted EUR30 million of investments from INVL Baltic Sea Growth Fund to develop cardboard business, according to a press release from Grigeo.
The corresponding agreement was signed on June 10 by Grigeo AB, which controls the cardboard business of the group, and BSGF Salvus, a subsidiary of INVL Baltic, and provides for phased investments of up to EUR30 million in Grigeo investicijų valdymas (a 100% subsidiary of Grigeo AB) with the acquisition of 49.99% of its shares. The transaction must be completed after the fulfillment of the contractual conditions, subject to approval by the Competition Council.
In addition to Ukraine’s Mena Pack, Grigeo Group includes enterprises in Lithuania and Latvia, namely Grigeo Klaipeda (owns 100% of Mena Pack) and Grigeo Recycling. According to the group’s plans, taking into account the growth in demand for cardboard and products from it, it intends to triple the production capacity in five years.
Mena Pack, which has been operating in the corrugated packaging market for over 30 years, produces corrugated packaging made of three-layer corrugated cardboard for tobacco, food and construction industries.
