News Environment & Sustainability Operations & Management Pulp
Mercer Peace River completes its fibre procurement project

Mercer Peace River (MPR) recently completed its fibre procurement project. The mill team celebrated this milestone with a ribbon cutting in front of the newly revitalized woodroom at the MPR site with dignitaries in attendance.

This project, officially announced in 2021, has transformed MPR’s fibre procurement process, improved its environmental performance, created a more sustainable business model and created several long-term career opportunities, according to a Mercer International press statement. The fibre procurement project had two priorities. The first priority was revitalizing the woodroom by building a brand new debarker and wood chipper. The second priority was the establishment of Peace River Transport.

According to Mercer, the new woodroom features one of the largest debarkers in the world together with a state-of-the-art wood chipping facility. This new facility has changed MPR’s hardwood fibre procurement process and will bring MPR’s use of diesel wood chippers on aspen trees in the forest to an end. Hardwood logs will now be cut to length and transported to the mill on larger, efficient 10-axle Peace River Transport trucks. The logs will be processed through the debarker and wood chipper, which are equipped with innovative debarking, chipping and monitoring technologies.

This new way of processing hardwood improves MPR’s environmental performance substantially. By 2050, through this investment, MPR is projected to have reduced fossil fuel emissions by over 900,000 tonnes of CO2e and sequestered 2.6 million tonnes of CO2e through forest conservation. Mercer further adds that MPR’s onsite processing is powered by the green energy generated onsite.

MPR is proud to have completed this significant milestone that will transform the hardwood procurement process.