Award to be presented at the Fastmarkets RISI 2020 European Conference which will be held in Lisbon in March.

Fastmarkets RISI, the definitive source of commodity data and insights for the forest products industry, has named Ilim Group CEO, Kseniia Sosnina the Fastmarkets RISI European CEO of the Year. Kseniia Sosnina is the first woman to receive this award. The award will be presented at the Fastmarkets RISI European Conference, March 10th in Lisbon, Portugal.

The European CEO of the Year Award is nominated by a group of investment analysts, industry consultants and commentators covering the European and global pulp and paper industry.

Reasons cited by nominators included a number of factors: “The company had great performance in 2018, achieving very high margins by industry standards. Significant investments were done in order to improve environmental standards at the mills in 2018-2019”.

Another made note: “Ilim Group has been investing/growing significantly this year”. The industry professionals also emphasized that Kseniia Sosnina is an extraordinary person and holds a unique position in the male-dominated P&P industry.

When told of her award win, Ilim Group CEO Kseniia Sosnina commented: “I have worked in the pulp and paper industry for almost 20 years, and I see our industry as one of the most advanced especially in terms of complexity and forward thinking. I know that the people who choose to work in our industry are well educated, smart, highly professional and open to change. I am very honored to have been nominated the European CEO of the year. It is a great honor not only for me personally, but for almost 20,000 people who define ILIM and who contribute to its success every day. It is also a recognition of the dedication and long-term commitment to sustainable growth by our JV shareholders”.

Kseniia is the first woman to win the European CEO of the Year Award, a notable moment as the industry sees more and more female professionals emerging.

“As the first woman in our industry to receive this award, I am convinced that there will be more and more remarkable female nominations in years to come and would like to thank my many colleagues I have worked with for the support and opportunity to learn from you”, said Kseniia Sosnina.

Kseniia Sosnina was appointed CEO of JSC Ilim Group in 2016. Ilim Group is the largest pulp, paper, and board producer in Russia and one of the largest sellers of softwood pulp to China. Ilim products are consumed by more than 500 mills across 20 regions in China.

In 2018, according to Ilim Group's annual report (RAS), its revenue increased by 40% and amounted to RUB 155.7 billion, income before tax - RUB 45.3 billion, net profit - RUB 35.6 billion. Production volumes reached 3.4 million tons. Retaining their leadership in the pulp and paper market in terms of volume, in 2018 Ilim Group mills produced 2.1 million tons of pulp, 870 thousand tons of packaging materials, 340 thousand tons of white papers, 80 thousand tons of forest chemicals and 229 million m2 of corrugated packaging.

In 2018, Ilim Group also showed sustainability efforts, allocating more than RUB 11 bn to environmental actions aimed to reduce the environmental impact and implement BAT, including environmental CAPEX spent during the implementation of strategic investment projects.

Kseniia’s experience in the pulp and paper industry spans almost 20 years. Before assuming the position as the CEO, she was a board member of Ilim Group and President of International Paper Russia. She holds a degree in economics from National Research Nuclear University (MEPhI) in Russia and completed a business management internship at the University of South Carolina in the USA.

ILIM Group is the largest manufacturer of pulp and paper products in Russia. Ilim has three pulp and paper mills in the Arkhangelsk (Koryazhma) and Irkutsk (Bratsk, Ust-Ilimsk) Oblasts, two modern corrugated box plants in the Leningrad and Moscow Oblasts and Sibgiprobum engineering and design institute (Irkutsk). Ilim Group supplies its products to more than 70 countries. The Company employs more than16 thousand people.

Fastmarkets RISI

Fastmarkets is a leading international business-to-business information group focused primarily on the global banking, asset management and commodities sectors.

The company is the leading price reporting, analytics and events organization for global commodities markets, including the forest products sector, as Fastmarkets RISI. Businesses working in the pulp and paper, packaging, wood products, timber, biomass and nonwovens markets use Fastmarkets RISI data and insights to benchmark prices, settle contracts and inform their strategies worldwide. Fastmarkets RISI provides forecasts, analysis, conferences and consulting services to stakeholders throughout the forest products supply chain.