On March 2, Ilim Group held an off-site business conference on future operations in the Chinese market in Xiamen. Over 370 delegates from partner companies took part in the event. The key topics discussed included priority regions for sales development and projected product sales volumes.
On March 2, Ilim Group held an off-site business conference on future operations in the Chinese market in Xiamen. Over 370 delegates from partner companies took part in the event. The key topics discussed included priority regions for sales development and projected product sales volumes.
China is a strategic sales market for Ilim Group. In 2016, the company produced 3.2 million tons of products, of which 1.4 million tons were destined for the Chinese market.
The company anticipates a steady rise in demand for Ilim Group products in China due to increasing hygienic and sanitary paper and pulp production and the expanding packing paper segment in five key regions: Baoding, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Shandong and Henan. Ilim Group also expects export sales in China to exceed 1.9 million tons.
Pulp consumption in China is forecasted to rise to 38 million tons by 2020. To satisfy this demand, Ilim Group plans to implement an investment project to further develop its production facilities in Bratsk and Ust-Ilimsk. The suggested investment amounts to 53 billion roubles. Implementing this project will enable Ilim Group to increase its total annual pulp and paper production volumes by over 500,000 tons. In addition, the construction of a new pulp production unit in Ust-Ilimsk is also being considered.
During the conference, it was noted that the company will pay particular attention not only to increasing products sales volumes, but also to developing logistics infrastructure to facilitate sales via sea and river routes in the country’s south.
About Ilim Group
Ilim Group is the largest pulp and paper company in Russia by market share, production and investment volumes. It is one of the world’s leading companies in the industry. Ilim Group is a strategic partner of International Paper, the world’s largest pulp and paper company.
China is a strategic market for Ilim Group, as over 40% of the company’s products are exported to the country. The products exported are softwood and hardwood bleached pulp, unbleached pulp, and containerboard.
Ilim Group has maintained long-standing close connections with its Chinese partners. The company has been consistently developing its operations in China since 1996. Export sales volumes to China have risen steadily. Over the past 20 years, Ilim Group has exported around 17 million tons of products to the Chinese market.
Ilim Group is among the top-10 most popular and influential pulp brands in China. It has over 55 direct customers, and exports softwood and hardwood pulp and containerboard to over 500 Chinese plants in 20 regions of the country.
The pulp delivered is used to produce hygienic and sanitary products, various kinds of paper – including offset and coated paper – and viscose rayon fiber. The board it produces is used in the production of packing paper and bag paper.