With the decline in plastics, the use of paper in all categories, including cellulose, has increased significantly. Expectedly, the price of hygienic paper products will rise.
Vajda-Papír Kft. can maintain its planned production even with high cellulose prices, but the price of hygienic paper products will increase – Attila Vajda, the company’s managing director, told MTI.
He indicated that there is cellulose available on the international market, but its price has doubled since the beginning of the year. Although there is no supply problem, no reduction in cellulose prices is expected in the medium term, he added.
The Executive Director explained that fresh cellulose, from which hygienic base paper is made, cannot be replaced by other raw materials due to technological and quality control. The availability of recycled paper is limited, not enough to replace pure cellulose on a full and global scale, he emphasized.
The cellulose fibers used in the production of hygienic paper, from which the base paper is made, are sourced from South America and the Scandinavian region. The current and the second phase of the factory expansion of the cellulose storage are suitable for storing 3 months ‘stock, they can store 2 months’ stock of base paper. The impact of significant and lasting increases in raw material prices and production costs cannot be mitigated by manufacturers in most industries, including paper production, for a long time, it seems inevitable to pass them on to customers, so further price increases are expected, said Attila Vajda.
He drew attention to the fact that not only did raw materials become more expensive, but rising energy prices also significantly increased transportation costs, and the weakening of the forint also raised costs.
At the same time, Attila Vajda confirmed that Vajda-Papír is expanding its production capacity year by year to be able to provide supply. Hungary’s annual demand is 90 thousand tons of toilet paper, paper handkerchiefs and household paper towels, and the Vajda-Papír Group’s annual capacity is 140 thousand tons. Attila Vajda said that since the outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic, they have been working with full staff, production is also continuous in the factory units in Dunaföldvár, Székesfehérvár and Budapest, 24 hours a day, every day of the week.
The company’s operating and manufacturing costs will increase in the future. To compensate for these, environmental protection, efficiency improvement measures and investments are being made so that consumer prices rise only as much as necessary, the executive said. Attila Vajda emphasized that the company has spent HUF 20 billion over the past 10 years to enable production and operation with the most modern and environmentally friendly, sustainable technologies possible. They use cellulosic raw material from responsible forestry for their hygienic paper products.
The managing director also said that Vajda-Papír plans to spend HUF 50 million a year on the application of more environmentally friendly solutions in the coming years. He emphasized that the application of energy-saving solutions and the protection of the environment were also aspects of the first phase of the development of the Dunaföldvár plant, but the second phase financed from the latest bond issue will result in even greener solutions. According to previous information from the company, the Vajda-Papír Group’s sales increased by 10% to HUF 52 billion last year, and its profit before tax and interest and depreciation (EBITDA) amounted to HUF 6 billion, compared to HUF 2.5 billion a year earlier.
MTI
pixabay
