Metsä Board begins change negotiations and discontinues investment pre-engineering

Paper and board producer Metsä Board Oyj is launching change negotiations covering all personnel in Finland and initiating statutory negotiations in its other operating countries. These actions are part of the company's previously announced EUR 200 million cost savings and profitability improvement program. The negotiations in Finland will commence no earlier than October 7, 2025.

The negotiations are driven by production-related, financial, and operational restructuring needs. The stated aim is to adjust the company's cost structure, enhance cash flow, improve business operations, and strengthen conditions for sustainable growth. The process may lead to redundancies and reorganisation of tasks and operations. An estimated reduction of up to 315 employees is possible, with 155 of those in Finland.

In addition to personnel adjustments, Metsä Board has decided to discontinue the pre-engineering phase for two significant investment projects. This decision stems from their insufficient profitability in the current market environment. The affected projects include the renewal of the drying machine at the Husum pulp mill and the barrier board development project at the Kyro board mill. Furthermore, an investment project involving a product change on the BM2 board machine at Husum, in cooperation with Metsä Tissue, will also be paused.

Metsä Board CEO Esa Kaikkonen stated that the challenging market situation necessitates consistent and effective measures. "Adjusting the cost structure and enhancing operations are necessary to return business profitability to a sustainable level," Kaikkonen said. "At the same time, we are creating stronger conditions for long-term competitiveness and growth." One-off costs associated with potential changes will be recorded as items affecting comparability.