Features Pulp
Valmet delivers new chipper to Sappi pulp mill in South Africa

The order consists of a Camura GS1050 chipper with auxiliaries and a screen extension, including machinery, erection, commissioning, training and start-up supervision. Mechanical installation is also carried out by Valmet.

The upgrade targets are to increase the chipping capacity, to maintain or improve chip quality and minimize wood losses, says Valment. The chipper will be delivered and installed in May 2018 and the start-up is planned for the beginning of June 2018.

“Valmet came up with a unique solution to ‘swop’ out the existing chipper with a new larger chipper by not requiring any major concrete works changes allowing for a short shut-down duration to install the new chipper, thus enabling minimal operation down time,” said Ryno Eksteen, senior regional project manager at Sappi.

“South Africa has been a successful market area for Valmet’s wood handling business and with this delivery we continue our positive trend. The Valmet sales team concentrated on optimizing the solution for a demanding raw material and minimizing the payback time for Sappi,” said Jussi Taskinen, Manager R&D, Product Portfolio & Strategy at Valmet.

The Ngodwana mill has been in operation since 1966 and entered the dissolving wood pulp market in 2013. It mill produces paper grade pulp for own and for market consumption, as well as newsprint, containerboard and dissolving wood pulp. It produces 330,000 tonnes of paper pulp for own consumption, 210,000 tonnes of dissolving wood pulp and 380,000 tonnes of paper (newsprint and kraft linerboard used for packaging) per annum.