Why Stora Enso’s Climate Resilience Plan Matters for the Entire Pulp and Paper Industry

The pulp and paper industry is entering a decisive decade.

Climate change is no longer a distant risk, sustainability is no longer a voluntary agenda, and resilience is no longer a buzzword. What matters now is execution, credibility, and long-term business logic.

That is why the recently published Climate Resilience Plan 2025 by Stora Enso deserves attention—not just as a corporate document, but as a signal of where our industry is heading.

From Climate Targets to Business Resilience

What stands out in Stora Enso’s plan is a clear shift in framing. Climate action is not treated as a parallel sustainability track—it is positioned as core business strategy.

The plan explicitly links climate resilience to:

• Long-term wood supply security

• Operational continuity of mills and assets

• Product competitiveness in a carbon-constrained market

This reflects a broader industry truth: decarbonisation and resilience are now prerequisites for financial performance, not trade-offs.

Clear Decarbonisation Pathways—With Real Numbers

Stora Enso outlines a measurable, scope-based approach:

• Scope 1 & 2 emissions: targeted ~70% reduction by 2030 versus 2019

• Scope 3 emissions: targeted ~40% reduction by 2030, driven by supplier and customer engagement

• Net zero ambition: across all scopes by 2040

Importantly, the plan is grounded in commercially available technologies through 2030, while openly acknowledging uncertainties beyond that timeframe. This realism matters. Overpromising without technical pathways has become a credibility risk in our sector.

Operational Efficiency as a Climate Strategy

One of the most relevant messages for mill operators and industry leaders is the emphasis on efficiency-first decarbonisation:

• Energy efficiency improvements

• Electrification of processes

• Fuel switching and renewable energy integration

• Phasing out coal by 2025

Efficiency is framed not only as emissions reduction, but as cost competitiveness, energy security, and resilience against volatility. This is a critical lesson for the industry: sustainability investments must strengthen—not weaken—operational fundamentals.

Scope 3: Where the Real Challenge Lies

The plan is refreshingly transparent about Scope 3 emissions being the hardest to abate. Purchased chemicals, logistics, and customer processing dominate the footprint, and progress depends on:

• Supplier decarbonisation

• Infrastructure availability

• Customer adoption of low-carbon solutions

This reinforces a key industry reality: no company can decarbonise its value chain alone. Collaboration, data transparency, and shared standards will define success in the next phase of climate action.

Forests, Fiber, and Long-Term Value

Another critical element is the recognition that climate resilience in pulp and paper starts in the forest.

Climate risks to biological assets—drought, pests, fire, and biodiversity loss—are treated as financial and strategic risks, not environmental side notes. Adaptation planning for forests and plantations is therefore as important as mill decarbonisation.

This perspective aligns with a broader shift: renewable materials only remain credible if their sourcing is resilient and responsibly managed.

What This Means for the Industry

Stora Enso’s Climate Resilience Plan is not a template—but it is a benchmark.

It shows that:

• Climate strategy must be integrated with capital allocation

• Governance and accountability matter as much as ambition

• Transparency about uncertainty builds trust

• The pulp and paper industry can lead—not follow—the transition to a circular bioeconomy

For an industry often described as “traditional,” this is a reminder that reinvention is already underway.

Final Thought

The future of pulp and paper will be decided by those who treat climate change as a strategic design constraint, not a compliance exercise.

Resilience—operational, environmental, and financial—will separate leaders from laggards.

And plans like this indicate that parts of our industry are ready to lead that future.