Holmen

Holmen AB is a Swedish forest-industry company whose activities span forest ownership and management, paperboard, printing paper, sawn timber and energy. Its modern corporate history traces back to the Kempe family's northern Swedish sawmill interests and the creation of Mo och Domsjö AB in 1874. The company initially focused on timber production and exports, but expanded into pulp and paper around the turn of the twentieth century and later developed wood-based chemical activities. This evolution placed Holmen within the long industrial transformation of the Scandinavian forest economy, in which access to managed forests, hydropower, mills, ports and European customers supported an increasingly integrated business model. The company was historically known by the shortened name MoDo. The MoDo name also became associated with Swedish ice hockey through sponsorship of Modo Hockey from 1963. In 1988, Mo och Domsjö AB merged with Holmens Bruk AB, an industrial company based in Norrköping. The group adopted the name Holmen AB in February 2000, reflecting the importance of the Holmen industrial heritage within the combined organization. Domsjö Fabriker, one of the older operating assets connected with the historical group, became independent in 2000 and was acquired by India's Aditya Birla Group in 2011. Holmen's principal operating structure has included Holmen Board and Paper, Holmen Wood Products, Holmen Forest and Holmen Energy. Board and Paper has been the largest business area, with mills at Iggesund, Hallsta and Braviken in Sweden and at Workington in the United Kingdom. Iggesund Paperboard supplies premium paperboard for consumer packaging and graphic applications under brands including Invercote and Inverform. The Workington mill produces Incada paperboard. Holmen Paper manufactures papers used in magazines, catalogues, direct mail, supplements, directories, books, newspapers and gift wrapping. Its named paper brands have included Holmen TRND, Holmen VIEW, Holmen UNIQ, Holmen NEWS, Holmen GIFT, Holmen XLNT, Holmen PLUS and Holmen BOOK. Holmen's wood-products operations produce construction and joinery timber from Swedish sawmills. These materials are used in areas such as flooring, window components, furniture and construction. Forest ownership and management provide a strategic raw-material base, while the energy business is connected with renewable electricity and the use of forest-industry infrastructure. The company therefore combines upstream forest assets with industrial processing rather than operating solely as a paper manufacturer. Europe is Holmen's principal commercial region, accounting for the large majority of sales according to the cited reference material, with Sweden identified as its largest individual market. The group has also adjusted its industrial footprint over time: in June 2016 it sold its newsprint mill in Madrid, Spain, to International Paper. Holmen has presented sustainability as an important part of its business model because its products depend on renewable forest resources, responsible forestry and efficient mill operations. In January 2017, it was ranked twenty-first in the Global 100 sustainability ranking. Holmen remains a publicly listed Swedish forest-products group, with Class B shares traded under the ticker HOLM-B.

Holmen's origins lie in the northern Swedish timber economy associated with Carl Kempe and the Mo and Domsjö sawmills near Örnsköldsvik. Kempe developed sawmill operations at Mo and later established a steam-powered sawmill at Domsjö on the Moälven river. His sons consolidated these interests and other family-controlled industrial assets into Mo och Domsjö AB in 1874. The Kempe family retained control of the company for much of the following century. The early enterprise was principally a timber producer and exporter. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries it moved downstream into pulp and paper, responding to growing European demand for processed forest products. In the middle decades of the twentieth century, the group also entered wood-based chemicals. The abbreviated name MoDo became widely used, and from 1963 the company supported the Swedish ice-hockey club Modo Hockey through sponsorship. A major structural change came in 1988, when Mo och Domsjö AB merged with Holmens Bruk AB of Norrköping. The combined group continued to operate under the Mo och Domsjö name until February 2000, when it was renamed Holmen AB. The rebranding emphasized the Holmen heritage while preserving the group's position as a diversified forest-products company. Domsjö Fabriker, one of the historically related industrial operations, became an independent company in 2000 and was later acquired by Aditya Birla Group in 2011. Holmen itself developed a structure organized around forest management, board and paper, wood products and energy. Its paper and paperboard operations became centered on Swedish mills at Hallsta, Iggesund and Braviken, together with the Workington mill in the United Kingdom. Iggesund Paperboard focused on premium packaging and graphic board, while Holmen Paper supplied publication, commercial-printing and gift-wrap markets. The company also maintained sawmills producing timber for construction and joinery applications. This combination of forest assets, mills and downstream product brands gave Holmen an integrated position in the European forest-products sector. Over time, the group adjusted its portfolio in response to market conditions; in 2016 it sold its Madrid newsprint mill to International Paper. The divestment reduced Holmen's direct exposure to that facility while leaving the group centered on paperboard, paper, timber, forestry and energy. Holmen's sustainability profile is linked to the renewable nature of its forest feedstock and to the management of forests, mill resources and energy generation. The company was placed twenty-first in the Global 100 ranking cited for January 2017. Its principal market remains Europe, with Sweden identified as its largest individual market. Holmen is a publicly listed Swedish company whose B shares trade under HOLM-B.

1. 2017Global 100 sustainability ranking

   Holmen was ranked twenty-first in the Global 100 sustainability assessment cited by the reference material.

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2. 2016Madrid newsprint mill is sold

   Holmen sold its Madrid, Spain, newsprint mill to International Paper.

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3. 2011Domsjö Fabriker is acquired by Aditya Birla Group

   India's Aditya Birla Group acquired the independent Domsjö Fabriker business.

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4. 2000Corporate name becomes Holmen AB

   The group changed its name from Mo och Domsjö AB to Holmen AB.

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5. 2000Domsjö Fabriker becomes independent

   Domsjö Fabriker separated from the group and operated as an independent company.

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6. 1988Merger with Holmens Bruk

   Mo och Domsjö AB merged with the Norrköping-based Holmens Bruk AB.

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7. 1963MoDo begins sponsorship associated with Modo Hockey

   The MoDo name became connected with the Swedish ice-hockey club through sponsorship.

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8. 1874Mo och Domsjö AB is established

   The Kempe family's sawmill and related industrial interests were consolidated into Mo och Domsjö AB.

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Nordic integrated forest-industry group combining forest ownership and management with premium paperboard, specialty and graphic paper, wood products and renewable energy.

• Iggesund PaperboardPremium paperboard

  Iggesund Paperboard produces premium paperboard for consumer packaging and graphic applications. Its principal brands include Invercote and Inverform, which are used where packaging design, print quality, stiffness and presentation are important. Production is associated with Holmen's Iggesund mill in Sweden.

• IncadaPaperboard

  Incada is a paperboard brand produced at Holmen's Workington mill in the United Kingdom. It serves packaging and graphic applications and forms part of Holmen's European paperboard portfolio alongside the Iggesund brands.

• Holmen PaperPrinting and publication paper

  Holmen Paper supplies papers for magazines, supplements, catalogues, direct mail, directories, books, newspapers and gift wrapping. Listed brand families include Holmen TRND, Holmen VIEW, Holmen UNIQ, Holmen NEWS, Holmen GIFT, Holmen XLNT, Holmen PLUS and Holmen BOOK.

• Holmen Wood ProductsSawn timber

  Holmen's wood-products operations manufacture construction and joinery timber at Swedish sawmills. The products are used in flooring, window components, furniture and building applications, linking the group's forest resources with construction and interior-material markets.

• Holmen Forest and EnergyForestry and renewable energy

  Holmen's forest and energy activities support the group's integrated model. Forest operations manage the raw-material base, while energy activities are connected with renewable electricity and the use of forest-industry assets.

• 1963Modo Hockey sponsorship

  Sweden

  MoDo began associating its name with Modo Hockey through sponsorship, creating one of the company's best-known historical links with Swedish popular culture and sport.

  Outcome. The MoDo name remained associated with the hockey club and became part of the company's public heritage.

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• 2016Divestment of Madrid newsprint millM&A

  Holmen adjusted its paper-industry asset portfolio and reduced its direct involvement in the Madrid newsprint operation.

  What changed. Holmen sold the Madrid newsprint mill to International Paper.

  Aftermath. The divestment left Holmen more concentrated on its remaining paperboard, paper, forestry, timber and energy businesses.

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• 2000Rebrand as Holmen ABStrategy

  Following the 1988 merger, the group operated under the historical Mo och Domsjö name.

  What changed. The company changed its corporate name to Holmen AB.

  Aftermath. Holmen became the principal corporate identity for the combined forest-industry group.

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• 1988Merge with Holmens Bruk ABM&A

  Mo och Domsjö AB combined with Holmens Bruk AB, bringing the two Swedish industrial groups together.

  What changed. The companies merged under the Mo och Domsjö AB name.

  Aftermath. The merged group later adopted the Holmen AB name in 2000.

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• 2017Holmen receives Global 100 sustainability ranking

  Holmen was ranked twenty-first in the Global 100 sustainability assessment cited in the reference material.

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• 2016Holmen sells Madrid newsprint mill to International Paper

  Holmen divested its newsprint mill in Madrid, Spain, selling the facility to International Paper.

  M&A
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• 2011Domsjö Fabriker acquired by Aditya Birla Group

  Domsjö Fabriker, which had operated independently since 2000, was acquired by India's Aditya Birla Group.

  M&A
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• 2000Holmen changes its corporate name from Mo och Domsjö to Holmen AB

  The group adopted Holmen AB as its corporate name, following the earlier merger with Holmens Bruk.

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1. Holmen (company)
2. Holmen official website