Fastmarkets RISI has announced that Ksenia Sosnina, CEO of JSC Ilim Group, has been named the Fastmarkets RISI 2020 European CEO of the Year. The award will be presented at the European Conference, March 10th in Lisbon, Portugal.
The European CEO of the Year Award is nominated by a group of investment analysts, industry consultants and commentators covering the European and global pulp and paper industry.
Reasons cited by a nominators included: “The company had great performance in 2018, achieving very high margins by industry standards. Significant investments were done in order to improve environmental standards at the mills in 2018-2019.”
Another made note: “[JSC Ilim Group] has been investing/growing significantly this year. Ksenia is also an interesting personality and holds a unique position in the male-dominated P&P industry”.
When told of her award win, Ksenia commented: “I have worked in the pulp & paper industry for several decades, and I see our industry as one of the most advanced in terms of complexity and forward thinking. I know that the people who choose to work in our industry are well educated, smart, highly professional and open to change. All the more reason why I am very honored to have been nominated the European CEO of the year. It is a great honor not only for me personally, but for almost 20,000 people who define ILIM and who contribute to its success every day. It is also a recognition of the dedication and long-term commitment to sustainable growth by our JV shareholders.”
Ksenia is the first woman to win the European CEO of the Year Award, a notable moment as the industry sees more and more female professionals emerging.
“As the first woman in our industry to receive this award, I am convinced that there will be more and more remarkable female nominations in years to come and would like to thank my many colleagues I have worked with for the support and opportunity to learn from you.“
Ksenia Sosnina was appointed CEO of JSC Ilim Group in 2016. As the largest pulp, paper, and board producer in Russia, they are one of the largest sellers of softwood pulp to China and their products are consumed by more than 500 mills across 20 regions in China.
In 2018 under Ksenia’s leadership, Ilim Group increased revenue by 40%, amounting to RUB 155.7 bn income before tax (approximately 2.47 bn USD) — RUB 45.3 bn profit (715.5mil USD) — RUB 35.6 bn (566.04 mil USD). Production volumes also increased in 2018 to reach 3.4 million tons.
Retaining their leadership in the pulp and paper market in terms of volume, in 2018 Ilim Group mills produced 2.1 million tons of pulp, 870 thousand tons of packaging materials, 340 thousand tons of white papers, 80 thousand tons of forest chemicals and 229 million m2 of corrugated packaging.
Ilim Group has also shown sustainability efforts, allocating more than RUB 11 bn (approximately 174.9mil USD) to environmental actions aimed to reduce the environmental impact and implement BAT, including environmental CAPEX spent during the implementation of strategic investment projects.
Ksenia’s depth of experience in the paper and packaging industry spans more than 20 years. Before assuming the position as the CEO, she was a board member of Ilim Group and President of International Paper Russia. She holds a degree in economics from National Research Nuclear University in Russia and completed a business management internship at the University of South Carolina in the USA.
