Metsä Group’s comparable operating result in the third quarter of 2020 better than expected

On behalf of the workers in our sector, Forest Products Association of Canada is disappointed in this outcome and strongly believes that these duties are completely unjustified and represent a costly and losing proposition for workers and paper customers on both sides of the border. FPAC applauds the swift response issued last night from Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland and Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr – they unequivocally defended Canada’s interests. In addition to strongly defending Canadian workers and businesses against these unfounded duties imposed by our U.S. neighbours, FPAC is calling on the Trudeau government to do the following: •Continue efforts to support industry’s efforts to aggressively diversify export markets. •Partner with FPAC and Canada’s forest products sector and our workers to further enable the transformation of our sector into new and innovative product areas. •Activate employment support programs for any Canadian workers who might be impacted in the event of reduced shifts or job losses. Click Read More below for additional information.

As part of its continued focus on global sustainability leadership, Ahlstrom-Munksjöhas initiated its ‘from Plastic to Purpose’ campaign, highlighting first its new brand of CelluSnack™ snack packaging papers. “Our ‘from Plastic to Purpose’ campaign aims at raising awareness around the world regarding the possibility of fiber-based solutions as a renewable packaging option,” said Robyn Buss, Executive Vice President of Ahlstrom-Munksjö’s Food Packaging & Technical Solutions Business Area. “Consumers and brand owners are demanding more sustainable solutions that reduce their impact on the environment and also have a positive end-of-life story – anywhere from compostability and biodegradation to recyclability. By promoting the story of ‘from Plastic to Purpose’ we are encouraging food and industrial packaging producers globally to consider fiber and paper-based solutions as they innovate products for their customers.”

Average input costs were stable sequentially and cost control was strong across the business. Currency movements had a net negative impact on underlying EBITDA compared to the second quarter, driven by a weaker US dollar, impacting a number of the Group's globally traded products, coupled with a weaker Russian rouble and Turkish lira. Given prevailing exchange rates, we anticipate a further net negative currency impact in the fourth quarter. During the quarter, planned maintenance shuts with an estimated impact on underlying EBITDA of around €35 million (2019: €40 million) were carried out successfully. Based on prevailing market prices, we continue to estimate that the impact of planned mill maintenance shuts on underlying EBITDA for 2020 will be around €100 million (2019: €150 million), with the fourth quarter impact expected to be around €55 million (2019: €30 million). Our major capital investment projects are progressing according to plan. The €67 million capital investment project to convert a containerboard machine at Štětí (Czech Republic) to become fully dedicated to the production of speciality kraft paper for shopping bag applications is scheduled to be commissioned during the fourth quarter. This additional capacity (75,000 tonnes) further supports our retail customers in their efforts to replace unnecessary plastic as they transition to more sustainable packaging solutions that contribute to the circular economy.