MISICS

The region Värmland has a strong position within Swedish forest industry. A number of break-through technologies within wood processing, ie continuous cooking, originates from the region. The manufacturing focus of the region’s pulp and paper companies is on packaging or tissue. The Paper Province companies form a more than 150 years old cluster within Värmland, northern Dalsland and Örebro County.

The two counties Hedmark and Oppland are the most important forest regions in Norway. The focus is on forestry and producing products of solid wood; building materials made out of wood, wooden houses and to some degree bioenergy. Three university colleges are located here. Tretorget is a cluster organization with its main area in these two counties. This region is neighbor to Värmland and has a long tradition with making business across the border.

Central Finland is recognized as the Bioenergy Region in Finland. The strongest branches of economic activity are pulp and paper, wood products, forestry and production of machineries and equipment. The Bioeconomy cluster of Central Finland represented by JAMK University of Applied Sciences generates actions to develop, educate, research and promote new businesses based on renewable natural resources and especially in the field of bioenergy.