Chinese cardboard and paper manufacturing group Nine Dragons has said that it expects to open its second Malaysian mill in the second quarter of 2022.
In its annual results, where it revealed a new profit of RMB 4.2 billion (£0.48 million) up 7.5% year-on-year, the company also noted that its new Malaysian packaging paper mill will produce 550,000 tonnes per year.
In September 2019, Nine Dragons purchased a pulp and paper mill in Bentong in the country, and a month later signed an agreement to build a paper manufacturing base in Selangor, Malaysia.
With additional capacity being built in China, including the 1.2 million tonnes per annum pulp and paper base in Hubei that will also open in 2022, Nine Dragons expects to have 19.32 million tonnes per year total capacity by the end of that year.
The Chinese cardboard and paper company also revealed that it was finding synergies from the downstream carton and corrugated cardboard business it bought this year, and that it plans to add packaging facilities to its existing mills in Chengdu and Chongqing.
Nine Dragons chairwoman Cheung Yan said: “As the global pandemic is getting more stable, despite great uncertainties that remain, a series of stimulating measures and the policy of ‘Plastic Ban Order’ launched by the Central Government will be significantly conducive to the demand for packaging paper.
“In the mid- to long-term, under a tighter supply and rising cost of raw materials, our edge of economies of scale as a large paper manufacturing enterprise will further prevail.
“Leveraging our competitive edges as the industrial leader, we are prepared to maintain the quality of products and stable raw material supply by consolidating the domestic raw materials supply and market.
“We will strive to expand our market share, maintain a healthy gearing ratio and sound cash flow management, with the ultimate target to enhance the overall profitability level.”
