The company has been export-oriented since its establishment in 1973, expanding its market and operations from Europe to other regions, such as the Middle East and Asia, which is nowadays the main source of growth of its business.

Metsä Fibre began its close collaboration with ITOCHU Corporation early on, which enabled the company to develop its business throughout Asia.

The bond between these two companies became even stronger as ITOCHU Corp. acquired 25 percent of shares from Metsä Fibre in 2012.

“ITOCHU’s deep knowledge of the market and extensive network allows us to expand the market areas and make more strategic investments, respond better to customer demands, and stay ahead of the trends,” said Ismo Nousiainen, chief executive officer of Metsä Fibre.

Metsä Fibre also wants to further strengthen its position on Japan’s sawn timber and pulp markets.

“Traditionally, Europe and Northern Africa have been strong markets for our sawn timber, and our market in China is growing strong, but we also want to continue to foster our relationship with our Japanese clients,” he added.

Moving forward, the company is aiming to develop sustainable solutions to address the issues concerning the current state of the environment. “Sustainability is in the core of all our operations. Resource efficiency saves raw materials, and our aim is to utilize 100 percent of wood raw materials. We see that wood-based solutions will replace fossil-based raw materials in, for example, packaging,” Nousiainen said.

The company went through a milestone in 2017 when it replaced its old pulp mill, located in the town of Äänekoski, and invested €1.2 billion on a modern bioproduct mill, making it the largest investment in the history of the Northern Hemisphere forest industry.

By shifting to more ecofriendly solutions, Metsä Fibre also aims to become the top producer of bioproducts all over the world.

Ismo Nousiainen, CEO of  Metsä Fibre  |  © Metsä Fibre

Metsä Fibre, part of Metsä Group, is running a pre-engineering project to create conditions for adding a bioproduct mill to Metsä Group’s current mill site in Kemi. In addition to pulp, the mill would produce various other bioproducts. This mill would be the biggest wood processing facility in the Northern Hemisphere. The final investment decision will be made early in the summer of 2020. (Illustrative picture of the mill area.)  |  © Metsä Fibre

Metsä Fibre’s high-quality products are made of renewable raw material coming from northern forests. The wood raw material is acquired from areas where forests grow more than they are used.  |  © Metsä Fibre

While the precious metal accounts for over half of all jewelry sold in Japan, the country is also a major innovator in industrial applications for platinum and other members of the platinum group metals (PGM) family.

The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics is less than one year away and Japan aims to deliver the most environmentally friendly games the world has ever seen. Athletes and spectators will be transported to and from venues by platinum-based hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). Japanese authorities believe FCEVs will be an important automotive innovation in the future.

“These particular metals have unique, elemental properties which enable them to be utilized across a range of industries,” said Paul Dunne, chief executive officer of Northam Platinum Ltd. “In the automotive industry, platinum-based metals increase the speed of chemical reactions in FCEVs, making them more efficient.”

Hydrogen and oxygen react and combine using a proton exchange membrane coated with a platinum catalyst to generate electricity in a platinum- based hydrogen fuel cell (heat and water are the only byproducts).

Paul Dunne, Chief Executive Officer of Northam Platinum Ltd.  |  © Northam Platinum

A rope conveyor located at Northam’s Booysendal mine.  |  © Northam Platinum

As Seth began to develop his customer base, he earned the trust of Sakata Inx and established the company’s Indian subsidiary. In its early days, he operated it from his home.

Despite fierce competition, Seth grew Sakata Inx (India) Pvt. Ltd. and today heads the third-largest ink manufacturer in India with two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities.

V.K. Seth, Managing Director of Sakata Inx Corp.  |  © Sakata Inx

In 2014, the company purchased Zoltek Companies Inc., a global leader in the commercialization of low-cost industrial carbon fiber, having plants in the U.S., Mexico and Hungary. Zoltek’s Hungarian plant, located in Nyergesujfalu, delivers solutions primarily to wind energy, aircraft industry and automotive structural applications.

“Over the years, we have expanded our investments in France six times and in 2014 we began production of polyacrylonitrile in our carbon fiber raw material (precursor) plant,” said Guilhempey. “With integrated production capabilities, this is the largest precursor facility in the world and that enables us to be more competitive and also supply various Toray Group production bases.”

Photo by: Synergy Media Specialists