Filenews 22 April 2022 - by Adamos Adamou
Expensive and rare as if it is made of gold is the paper that the market has been trading in recent times since the production and distribution of paper has not been unaffected by the turmoil caused by the pandemic in the global supply chain and continues to be hit by the Ukrainian and a number of other factors such as the strike on the Finnish giant UPM.
The turbulence faced by the paper market in Cyprus was recorded in "F" by Apostolos Apostolou, managing director of Panhartico Ltd, wanting as he said to pay the appropriate attention to the problem since, as he explained, like many other items, paper is the raw material for several products of our everyday life, such as kitchen paper, toilet paper, the paper we use for photocopies and for printing magazines, newspapers and books.
Mr. Apostolou said that apart from the large increase recorded in the price of the product, of 60 and 70% compared to last year, it now seems that a production problem will arise, without excluding shortages in the near future. The ceo of Panhartico, one of the largest companies importing and trading paper on the island, said that a problem of shortages has already begun to occur in the raw material for paper production, the required pulp used by factories that supply Cyprus and chemicals that are also necessary for paper. He added that, as a result, production has decreased for some grades of paper, such as paper for printing magazines, newspapers and books, but there is an increase in cardboard for the manufacture of various paper packaging, such as pharmaceuticals, as well as paper for personal use, such as toilet paper, kitchen paper and napkins.
He took note, for example, of the strike that began at the beginning of the year and will continue at least until the end of the month, of upm workers in Finland, who are among the largest paper producers, with the guilds warning that their measures will continue if there is no agreement to renew their collective agreement.
At the same time, according to Mr. Apostolou, several factories abroad are converting their machines for cardboard production instead of paper, due to the reduced demand that has existed in the past, mainly due to digitalization, which also reduces production. He also noted that, very recently, the Swedish company STORA ENZO has announced its intention to reduce the production of paper for printing, by 1.7 million euros. tons, which corresponds to about 9% of the total production of printing papers in Western Europe. For Cyprus in particular, said Mr. Apostolou, a problem also arises because of the Ukrainian problem, since several Western suppliers of the market had factories in Russia and can no longer serve and supply products, such as photocopying paper and paper for making cardboard boxes. Also, Cypriot processing companies, mainly engaged in sanitary stationery and toilet paper, are facing problems of supplying raw materials.
As a first step to address the situation, Mr. Apostolou said that there should be savings from everyone and especially from the State, which is perhaps the largest consumer of paper on the island. But there are no magic solutions to international increases in paper prices, he added. In Cyprus of the small economy, the blow will be greater and due to distances from the countries that supply us, he estimated.
Asked, finally, if paper recycling could alleviate the situation, he explained – as president of DIKRA, the Non-Packaging Paper Waste Management Company, which in collaboration with Green Dot is responsible for paper recycling – that recycling goes abroad, since in Cyprus there is no plant that could convert it for reuse.
Support for the press due to a large increase in the price of paper
The problem is not only Cypriot but it troubles all the countries of the world. In Greece, just last week the Athens Newspaper Owners Association even had a meeting with the Greek government and formally requested measures to support the press, due to the ever-increasing cost of paper. A huge blow also occurs for the Daily Cypriot Press, for the publication of newspapers and magazines that have to pay for paper, 60% and 70% more expensive. In this context, according to Mr. Apostolou, it is time to discuss how the daily press in Cyprus could be helped, since the price of paper, bearing in mind international analysts, is not expected to decrease in the near future.
