Commercial production has been started at the Kerala Paper Products Limited (KPPL), under govt of Kerala. The KPPL is the new name for the Hindustan Newsprint Limited after its takeover by the state government from the Central government. The 45 GSM newsprint will be produced at the company in the first phase. The subsequent phases will see the production of 42 GSM and 52- 70 GSM printing papers.

Taking advantage of the global growth of the packaging and paperboard industry and the ban on single-use plastic products, KPPL strives to capitalize on new-age opportunities through product diversification and capacity enhancement. The government aims to develop KPPL as an organization with Rs 3,000 crore turnover.  KPPL will be transformed into an organization with a production capacity of five lakh metric tons per annum, which can provide employment to around 3,000 people.

After taking over the company, the revamp started on January 1, 2022. The renovation is envisaged in four phases.  In the initial phase, the company had undertaken maintenance of the paper machine, recycled pulping plant, boiler, and related machinery at ₹34.3 crores. The first phase was completed within five months.  The chemical and mechanical plants were renovated utilizing ₹44.94 crores in the second phase to maximize the production capacity and pave the way for commercial newsprint production using wood pulping streams together with recycled pulp.
Grade paper for notebooks and textbooks will also be produced here as the production progress.  In order to ensure the availability of raw materials, 24,000 metric tonnes of wood material has been sanctioned from the plantation owned by Hindustan Newsprint Limited and the plantation of the State Forest Department. Along with this, waste papers from government offices and institutions will also be made available for KPPL.The third phase, which will focus on manufacturing high-quality packaging boards, will be spread over 27 months and cost ₹650 crores. The fourth and final phase will be undertaken in 17 months at an outlay of ₹350 crores to commence production of packaging-grade paper.
 

Last updated on : 2023-09-27 13:50:25