Sweco to design capacity expansion for Kemira’s Äetsä Plant

Published 20, October 2025

Kemira is building a new production line at its Äetsä manufacturing facility to produce powdered sodium borohydride for the pharmaceutical industry. The powdered substance is used as a reducing agent in several production processes for pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. The new production line will be commissioned by the end of 2026.

Sweco will carry out the expansion project using the EPCM delivery model. In the EPCM model, Sweco is responsible for comprehensive project management, covering design, procurement coordination and construction supervision. At the end of the EPCM phase, the plant will have reached mechanical completion, after which it will be handed over to the client for commissioning preparations. The new production line will be commissioned by the end of 2026.

Sweco has previously designed and delivered several projects for Kemira, including a sodium chlorate plant in Joutseno and multiple hydrogen peroxide projects at various sites.

“We have carried out several projects with Kemira in Finland and abroad. It is great to continue this well-functioning collaboration. In this project, we support Kemira in an expansion that strengthens the pharmaceutical industry’s needs in export markets. Sweco is involved in multiple projects for the pharmaceutical sector, which is one of our key growth areas both domestically and internationally,” says Tuomas Salminen, Division Director, Industry and Energy at Sweco.