Paper and paperboard substrate provider Stora Enso reports its Q1 2025 YOY sales were up 9% to US$2.7 billion, due mainly to higher prices and more deliveries. Key highlights of its Interim Report:

The new consumer packaging paperboard line at the Oulu site in Finland (above) began production in March 2025. It is expected to reach a break-even point by year-end 2025 and full capacity in 2027.

Stora Enso plants to implement a leaner and flatter organizational structure as of July 1, 2025, dividing its packaging business into four main areas with a reinforced focus on renewable packaging as the core business: Foodservice and Liquid Board, Cartonboard, Containerboard, and Packaging Solutions. The new structure would expand total business areas from five to seven, removing one management layer, and pushing P&L responsibility closer to customers and operations.

In the Packaging Materials division, the containerboard market is expected to remain stable with ongoing price increases. Consumer board demand is expected to be seasonally stronger, and products from Stora Enso’s new consumer packaging board line will gradually increase delivery volume.

The Packaging Solutions division anticipates increased demand in Western Europe due to the seasonal fruit-and-vegetable market, while expectations for Asian demand suggest a return to lower norms.

The Biomaterials division predicts stable demand with higher prices drive by a tightening supply, partly offset by a weaker US dollar.