May 28, 2025 - Södra today held a ceremony in Mönsterås, Sweden, to mark the start of construction of the company's new kraft lignin plant. The new plant will cover an area of 1,400 m2 and be built on a prepared site at Södra's existing combined facility in Mönsterås.
Magnus Hall, Chair of Södra, Lotta Lyrå, CEO of Södra, Allan Widman, County Governor in Kalmar Municipality, Clara Helstad from the Swedish Energy Agency, Karin Dernegård, Mill Manager of Södra Cell Mönsterås and Johannes Bogren, Business Area President of Södra Bioproducts took part in the ceremony to mark the start of construction.
According to Södra, the facility is an important step in its strategy to make more from every tree and develop its business by adding new bio-based products. The plant will support the green transition and strengthen the local labor market.
"The construction start symbolizes a huge step forward, driven by innovation and long-term investments," said Johannes Bogren, Business Area President of Södra Bioproducts. "With this new plant, we are creating a completely new business operation at Södra that will support the green transition, increase profitability and strengthen the value of forest estates."
Lignin is a natural substance found in trees and acts as a binding agent between the fibers. Lignin is released during pulp production and is currently used mainly for energy generation.
Lignin is a natural substance found in trees and acts as a binding agent between the fibers. Lignin is released during pulp production and is currently used mainly for energy generation. With this new plant, Södra will be able to separate and dry kraft lignin, making it possible to replace fossil materials in, for example, adhesives, batteries, rubber and composites. The kraft lignin can also be used as the building block for new biofuels and biostimulants.
The plant is being constructed with support from the Swedish Energy Agency's Industrial Leap (Sw. Industriklivet), a government program that supports technology investments aimed at reducing the climate impact of industry. The Industrial Leap is part of the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), which is the centerpiece of the NextGenerationEU package.
The facility is scheduled for completion in 2027 and will then be the first commercial plant of its kind in Sweden and the world's largest producer of kraft lignin.
Södra is the largest forest-owner association in Sweden, with more than 50,000 family forest owners as members. Together, the members of Södra own a world-leading industrial operation that processes forest raw material into renewable products such as pulp, timber, building systems, energy and biochemicals.
SOURCE: Södra