Metso will supply the main technology for Ilim Group’s new kraft pulp mill, to be built in Bratsk, Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. The value of the order is approximately EUR 180 million.

Metso’s scope of supply will cover a complete fiber line comprising a digester, a screen room, an oxygen delignification system, brown stock washing and bleaching plants with wash presses and a drying line with a Fourdrinier wet end and two baling lines. Integral to the Bratsk reconstruction program are a new Metso recovery boiler and an upgrade of the evaporation plant. Furthermore, Metso will deliver an automation system for all process areas, and necessary analyzers and special equipment for quality and runnability management. The order received emphasizes Metso's strong capabilities as a full-scope supplier fo the pulp industry. The new pulp mill is scheduled to start up during 2012.

About 60% of the value of the order is included in Paper and Fiber Technology's Q2 orders received and about 10% in Energy and Environmental Technology's Q2 orders received. About 30% of the value of the order was included already in the new orders of Energy and Environmental Technology in Q4/2009. The new pulp mill will produce 720,000 tonnes of bleached softwood market pulp a year, bringing the overall annual pulp production at Bratsk to over 1 million tonnes. When in operation, the Bratsk mill will be one of the world’s largest and most modern softwood pulp production facilities. Ilim Group’s overall investments in the project are about EUR 570 million (nearly USD 700 million).

Ilim Group is a leading Russian pulp and paper producer, headquartered in St. Petersburg. The strategic partner of Ilim Group is International Paper, a global leader in the paper and packaging industry. The total annual pulp and paper production volume of Ilim Group is more than 2.3 million tonnes. Ilim Group employs over 20,000 people.