RUSSIA -- Mondi announced this week that a Euro 30 million large-scale pulp dryer project for the production of softwood market pulp at Mondi Group's Syktyvkar mill is nearing completion.

"We are proud of our mill's heritage, community relations and continued achievements", said Peter Orisich, CEO of Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper. "The new pulp dryer will allow us to produce more than 100,000 tonnes of FSC® certified softwood market pulp per year", says Klaus Peller, Mondi Syktyvkar Managing Director. "The project has been successfully managed by a professional team and we're set to officially mark the opening of the pulp dryer on 19 November 2014 as planned", explains Klaus Peller, Managing Director, Mondi Syktyvkar.

Mondi said that the foundation works for the pulp dryer and auxiliary equipment were finished late May 2014, while the roof and ventilation were completed this summer. In the final phase, the drying section, tanks, pipelines, electrical and automation equipment were installed during September.

The pulp dryer allows Mondi Syktyvkar to produce a new bleached softwood market pulp called KOMICELL, which is FSC® certified and produced without elemental chlorine (ECF).

"This FSC® chain of custody certified product is ideally suited to meet the needs of our national and international packaging, tissue, and newsprint industry customers. Together with our proven supply chain capabilities, we are looking forward to fulfilling our customer requests - on time and in full", said Igor Naumov, Mondi Syktyvkar Market Pulp Sales Manager.

The company said that softwood pulp is the most valuable fiber material in paper production. It mainly consists of long fibers that can be used with short-fibered materials (mechanical, hardwood, straw and cane pulp) in paper production and can also be used on its own. First deliveries of KOMICELL are planned for this year.