EPRC: Trade Routes Many and Varied

Shipments of recovered fiber moving from North America and Europe to China have escalated during this decade, but scrap paper continues to move along other international routes as well.

In a session on global markets at the 2008 European Paper Recycling Conference, moderator Wade Schuetzeberg of ACN (Europe) noted that Japan has become a considerable exporter, having “grown dramatically to be a key player in the global fiber market.”

Schuetzeberg says Japan, which generates 23 million metric tons of recovered fiber but consumes only 19 million, is now “the third largest exporter, behind the United States and the EU.” The nation’s shipments are also generally highly valued for their quality, said Schuetzeberg.

Within Europe, Jim Malone of Severnside Recycling in the United Kingdom noted that markets for the U.K.’s increased collected tons have been strong overseas, in nations like China and Spain, but that environmentalists who advocate a smaller carbon footprint have been questioning the practice.

The export markets have been necessary, however, as the U.K. has had numerous mill closures this decade. Malone noted, however, that three new mills are under construction in the U.K., with a St. Regis plant opening in 2009, India’s Palm opening a mill in 2010 and Spain’s SAICA opening a mill in 2011.

Carlos Ventos of SAICA remarked that this decade has been one of “evolution” in his nation, with a boom in both supply (tons collected) and demand. Both booms have meant that Spain’s paper industry has gone from being “a local market to a global market.”

In particular, Spain has been importing large amounts of OCC and other brown grades to feed its container board mills. Overall, Spain has seen 1 billion euros invested in new mill capacity this decade, including in board, newsprint and tissue mills.

A new challenge for Spanish mills has been competition for tons with Asian buyers. Before Asian buyers came into the market, “We had higher margins,” said Ventos.

The 2008 European Paper Recycling Conference, hosted by the Recycling Today Media Group, took place at the Marriott Amsterdam Oct. 6-7.