Born From a successful strategic merger
The predecessor of Metsä Board, Metsä-Serla, was established by the merger of Metsäliiton Teollisuus Oy (the industrial branch of the Metsäliitto Cooperative) and G.A. Serlachius Oy on 31 December 1986.
The merger unified two long-established Finnish forest industry companies. Metsäliitto Cooperative was initially established as a wood exporting company in 1934, starting board production at Äänekoski mill in 1966. Apothecary G.A. Serlachius founded a groundwood mill in Mänttä in Central Finland in 1868, and began folding boxboard production at Tako mill in 1932.
Growth through acquisitions
The 1990s and early 2000s were a period of extensive growth. The company acquired several production units around Europe, including the Kemi, Kyro and Simpele mills in Finland and Husum mill in Sweden.
Metsä-Serla subsequently switched its focus to printing papers and packaging products, and in 2001, changed its name to M-real, reflecting its wider international character.
Transformation to Europe’s leading paperboard company
Significant structural changes started in 2005, when the company was still the largest fine paper producer in Europe. Numerous subsequent divestments, closures and restructuring actions successfully reduced the company’s exposure to risks in the declining paper business. In 2012 the company changed its name to Metsä Board, emphasising its Finnish forest heritage and what is now its core business.
In December 2014, Metsä Board launched the final stages of its transformation into Europe’s leading fresh fibre paperboard producer. A new 400,000 t/y folding boxboard production line started up at Metsä Board Husum mill at the beginning of 2016. The company also extended its offering to include food service boards, in addition to folding boxboards and white krafliners. Husum’s extrusion coating line’s installation work began in autumn 2016, and it was taken into use in 2017.
The production of uncoated fine paper at the Husum mill ended in summer 2016. Metsä Board ended the production of wallpaper base at its Kyro mill in Finland, in autumn 2016.
Today Metsä Board is a pure paperboard company with strong pulp self-sufficiency, a record of innovation and top-class profitability.
