Stora Enso inaugurates new Innovation Centre for biomaterials in Stockholm withSwedish Minister for Enterprise and Innovation, Mikael Damberg, and Stora Enso CEO, Karl-Henrik Sundström present at at the opening thursday. The Norwegian Banks Investmen Management( oljefondet) is one of the major shareholders in Stora Enso togheter with Wallenberg and the State of Finland.
The Innovation Centre for biomaterials will host research, application, business development and strategic marketing under one roof. By creating renewable solutions and products from second-generation biomass, such as wood, in order to replace fossil-based products, the centre is addressing societal problems such as climate change, increased urbanisation as well as water and land use issues. Reneable materials company “The Innovation Centre in Stockholm is another important step on the road to Stora Enso’s transformation into a renewable materials company. It will help us build on our long, worldwide tradition in forestry, which – when coupled with access to sustainable raw materials and our expertise in fibres – gives us an excellent starting point for creating solutions that will benefit our customers and end-users in various industries and markets,” says Karl-Henrik Sundström, CEO at Stora Enso. Will boost innovation “Specifically, the centre will help to boost innovation by identifying business opportunities in the markets for renewable materials and bio-based chemicals. We will link our own expertise with leading research centres, universities and business partners,” says Arno van de Ven, SVP, Head of Innovation in Stora Enso’s Biomaterials division. Will employ one hundred Currently, there are 40 people working in the centre and it is estimated that by the end of 2017 it will employ around 100 people, recruited both from inside of the company as well as externally. The Innovation Centre covers 4 900 m2, with a state-of-the art laboratory area of 1 600 m2, and is located in the greater Stockholm area in Nacka, Sweden, says Kirsi Seppäläinen, SVP Communications, Division Biomaterials in stora Enso. Leading provider Stora Enso is a leading provider of renewable solutions in packaging, biomaterials, wood and paper on global markets. Our aim is to replace non-renewable materials by innovating and developing new products and services based on wood and other renewable materials. We employ some 27 000 people in more than 35 countries, and our sales in 2014 were EUR 10.2 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm AB (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA as ADRs (SEOAY) on the International OTCQX over-the-counter market, reports Nordic News.
