| PAPER INDUSTRY NEWS - JANUARY 2004 |
This page contains pulp and paper industry news for January 2004
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NEWS JANUARY 2004
Blue Ridge Paper, Italpack Cartons Sign Packaging Alliance
Blue Ridge Paper Products, Inc., Canton, NC, signs a supply agreement with Italpack Cartons of Lacedonia, Italy, to source 100% of Italpack's paperboard requirements and provide sales, technical and marketing expertise for the converting of gabletop-carton packaging.
Italcartons converts offset-printed gabletop cartons for both PurePak and
Rex-style packaging. The company also has the capability to produce gabletop
cartons with liquid-tight transparent windows.
The agreement gives Blue Ridge Paper and Italcartons an integrated information
structure to market gabletop packaging in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Phillip Bowen, vp/gm of Blue Ridge will join the Board of Directors of Italpack
Cartons to ensure close cooperation between the two companies.
Blue Ridge Paper is a leading producer of liquid packaging, and coated bleached
board for foodservice packaging. The company also produces envelope and
specialty uncoated papers.
GN Packaging forms JV with South African Partner
Toronto, Canada-based liquid-pouchmaking provider GN Packaging Equipment forms a
new company with partner Maverick Packaging Intl. (Pty) Ltd. of Cape Town, South
Africa. Called Maverick Machinery Ltd., the joint venture allows the companies'
combined manufacturing and engineering capabilities to focus on new and specific
areas of the liquid-pouch marketplace.
The partnership will permit a proactive exchange of technical expertise in
addressing the ever-increasing demands of the bag-in-box industry, says GN
Packaging. Along with an increased international presence, GN & Maverick will be
better prepared to serve the needs of both their multinational and regional
liquid-pouch customers.
Cascades acquires Scierie P.H. Lemay Ltd. sawmill
KINGSEY FALLS, Quebec, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Cascades Inc. (CAS- TSX)
has announced its acquisition of all shares in the Scierie P.H. Lemay Ltd., a
sawing and planing plant operating in the Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region of Quebec.
Prior to this transaction, Cascades had a 50% holding in the company. Its
initial investment dates back to March 1996.
According to Eric Laflamme, President and COO, North America, Cascades Boxboard
Group, "This sawmill is using state of the art technology and has a workforce of
160 employees. Additionally, with an annual wood processing capacity of 400 000
cubic meters, it provides a regular supply of wood chips to our pulp and
boxboard facilities in Jonquiere."
Source: CASCADES INC.
Frontier Resources Acquires Boise's Yakima Mills
BOISE, Idaho, Jan. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Boise Cascade Corporation (NYSE:BCC) announced today that it has reached agreement for the sale of its Yakima, Washington, plywood plant and sawmill complex to Frontier Resources, LLC, of Eugene, Oregon.
Thomas A. Lovlien, vice president, Boise Building Solutions, Manufacturing, said the company's decision to sell the Yakima facilities followed two years of evaluations in which numerous options had been considered. "In this instance," Lovlien said, "the outcome of our studies is a sale agreement with a qualified buyer, Frontier Resources."
Lovlien said Boise will retain ownership of its approximately 200,000 acres of central Washington timberlands and will continue to manage those holdings under the company's forestry programs and environmental policies.
Frontier Resources has indicated that it is now in process of developing its future plans for the acquired properties.
With the sale, Boise Building Solutions, a division of Boise, operates 23 manufacturing facilities in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. The business also operates 28 facilities that distribute a broad line of building materials, including wood products manufactured by Boise, to retail lumber dealers, home centers specializing in the do-it-yourself market, and industrial customers.
Boise, headquartered in Boise, Idaho, provides solutions to help customers
work more efficiently, build more effectively, and create new ways to meet
business challenges. Boise is a major distributor of office products and
building materials and an integrated manufacturer and distributor of paper,
packaging, and wood products. Boise owns or controls more than 2 million acres
of timberland, primarily in the United States, to support our manufacturing
operations. Visit the Boise website at www.bc.com/.
Weyerhaeuser to Sell Slave Lake OSB
Mill to Tolko Industries
SLAVE LAKE, Alberta, Jan. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY)
and Tolko Industries announced today that they have signed a letter of intent
for the sale to Tolko of the Weyerhaeuser oriented strand board (OSB) mill
located at Slave Lake, Alberta for approximately $C56 million ($US43 million).
The transaction is targeted to close on February 27, 2004, and is subject to
approval by the Weyerhaeuser board of directors, as well as government and other
required approvals.
"We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Tolko," said William R.
Corbin, executive vice president for Weyerhaeuser's Wood Products businesses.
"Weyerhaeuser remains committed to maintaining a strong presence within the
forest industry in Alberta, but we believe that the Slave Lake mill offers
strategic benefits to Tolko that Weyerhaeuser has chosen not to pursue. This is
yet another step we are making within Wood Products to improve the competitive
performance of our overall portfolio."
Bill Blankenship, vice president Engineered Panels for Weyerhaeuser added: "We will continue focus on our business priority of serving our customers from our other facilities as we improve our competitive position."
The Slave Lake OSB mill has annual production capacity of 240 million square feet (3/8-inch basis), and a timber allocation of approximately 600,000 cubic meters per year. The mill directly employs about 140 people.
Weyerhaeuser acquired the Slave Lake mill in 1992. In Alberta, Weyerhaeuser also operates two other OSB mills at Edson and Drayton Valley; a pulp mill at Grande Prairie, sawmills in Grande Prairie and Drayton Valley; an engineered products plant at Claresholm, as well several sales and customer service centres.
Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest integrated forest products companies, was incorporated in 1900. In 2002, sales were $29.1 billion ($18.5 billion US). It has offices or operations in 18 countries, with customers worldwide. Weyerhaeuser is principally engaged in the growing and harvesting of timber; the manufacture, distribution and sales of forest products; and real estate construction, development and related activities. Weyerhaeuser Company Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, has Exchangeable Shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol WYL. Additional information about Weyerhaeuser's businesses, products and practices is available at www.weyerhaeuser.com.
Sonoco Opens New Manufacturing Facility in Brazil
Hartsville, S.C. – Sonoco (NYSE: SON), the global packaging company, has opened a new manufacturing facility in Resende, Brazil, to produce steel easy-open closures for use on metal cans, according to Charles L. Sullivan, Jr., senior vice president, Consumer Products. Annual capacity of the plant is projected to be more than one billion closures.
The Resende plant, which is part of the Company’s Sonoco Phoenix business unit, is strategically located between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and accessible to critical supply points and ports. The facility will serve as Sonoco’s center for export to world markets as well as supplying the Brazilian market, the fourth largest packaging market in the world.
“Sonoco’s expansion in Brazil is part of a global growth initiative to leverage Sonoco Phoenix’s superior easy-open closure technology and its reputation for excellent customer support and technical assistance. The new plant provides a unique opportunity for Sonoco to meet the needs of companies in Brazil and around the world that want to convert to Sonoco’s easy-open closures,” said Sullivan.
“Sonoco’s investment in Brazil allows the Company to increase production capacity to meet growing consumer demand for easy-open closures throughout the world. Consumers prefer the convenience these closures add to canned foods because a can opener is not needed to open the package. Instead, the consumer uses only fingers to easily remove the closure. Food producers in Europe and North America have embraced Sonoco Phoenix’s easy-open closures as a new way to differentiate and promote their products and have been experiencing significant increases in market share and category growth. Sonoco believes the same will happen in Brazil,” said Sullivan.
“Brazil offers many opportunities for growth, since there is no comparable steel easy-open closure technology available,” explains Paul McClure, business development manager for Sonoco Phoenix. “Brazilian consumers will enjoy this new packaging feature. Sonoco Phoenix closures are significantly easier to open than other closures currently produced in Brazil, reducing the risk of cut fingers. Easy-open closures give consumers a new reason to buy a product—they like the convenience.”
McClure says Brazilian food companies also will benefit from Sonoco Phoenix’s easy-open closure technology. “Sonoco Phoenix’s closures withstand the high temperatures required for processing many foods. Our expertise in coating and special manufacturing techniques greatly reduces the risk of corrosion inside and outside of the package. These benefits allow food processors to improve their filling and sealing processes.”
Initially, the plant is operating with three manufacturing lines that produce 300 diameter easy-open closures suitable for a wide range of canned processed foods, including meats, seafood, vegetables, tomato products, dairy products and pet food. Sonoco plans to add additional manufacturing lines in the near future.
Sonoco Phoenix is the business unit of Sonoco that manufactures steel, aluminum and peelable membrane easy-open closures for metal, plastic and composite containers. Customers around the world use Sonoco Phoenix closures for food and nonfood applications. Sonoco Phoenix was created in 2001 when Sonoco purchased Phoenix Packaging, which was founded in 1993. Sonoco Phoenix operates seven manufacturing facilities in the United States and Brazil.
Sonoco, founded in 1899, is a global manufacturer of industrial and consumer products and provider of packaging services, with approximately 300 operations in 32 countries serving customers in some 85 nations. More information about the Company is available on its Web site at www.sonoco.com.
Sonoco announces new Tube and Core Facility in China
16 Jabuary 2004 Hartsville, S.C. – Sonoco (NYSE: SON) will open a new tube and core converting facility in Wujiang, Shengze town of Jiangsu province, China, and has signed a ten-year supply agreement with Jiangsu Hengli Chemical Fiber Co. Ltd., Wujiang, it was announced today by Harris E. DeLoach, Jr., president and chief executive officer, Sonoco.
“The new facility, currently under construction, is expected to be operating commercially by the third quarter of 2004. While we currently supply this area from our operation in Shanghai, by locating an operation in Wujiang it is our intention to better serve the growing domestic textile market developing around the Wujiang area. This area is quickly evolving from a dyeing and weaving center to a vertically integrated textile center and may well become one of the largest textile centers in the world,” said DeLoach. “We are particularly honored to have been named a long-term supplier by Jiangsu Hengli, one of the larger filament producers in China," he added.
“This expansion is indicative of our commitment to China, which is particularly important in light of the continuing movement offshore of North American manufacturing, especially in the textile industry,” stated DeLoach.
Sonoco’s current operations in China include a paper mill and a tube and core converting facility in Shanghai and another converting facility in Kaiping.
Sonoco, founded in 1899, is a global manufacturer of industrial and consumer
products and provider of packaging services, with operations in 32 countries,
serving customers in some 85 nations. For more information about the Company,
visit the Sonoco Web site at www.sonoco.com.
LP Begins Construction on World-Class Oriented Strand Board Mill in BC
PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 22, 2004--Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (LP) (NYSE:LPX) announced today that construction of its jointly owned oriented strand board (OSB) mill in British Columbia will begin this summer. LP expects to complete construction within 12 to 18 months.
Since the creation of the 50:50 joint venture with Slocan Forest Products (TSX:SFF) in June 2000, LP and Slocan have been making the necessary preparations to build the low unit cost, 800 million square feet (3/8" basis) OSB mill. This work has included site selection, preliminary engineering and securing an environmental permit for the project. The companies will combine their resources to build the world-class mill that will help satisfy long-term product needs, while making the most efficient use of sustainable resources in the region. Located in Fort St. John, the mill will serve growing demand in underserved building markets in Canada and the Western U.S.
"The timing is right to move forward with construction. The current dynamics in the building market will benefit from the additional capacity as the need for structural panels continues to grow," said Harold Stanton, LP's Vice President, OSB and a member of the joint venture board.
Stanton continued, "This joint venture complements our strategic $250 million capital plan to revitalize our existing mills. We are committed to maintaining our leadership position in the structural panels industry with state-of-the-art technology, low cost manufacturing capacity, and the highest quality for our customers."
Stanton noted that the cooperation and continued support of the provincial and community governments have been vitally important for the successful development of the joint venture and the mill.
The joint venture also announced the appointment of William Hebert as President of the joint venture to replace I.K. Barber, who is retiring. Mr. Hebert has been a 30-year employee with LP, most recently as Vice President, Business Development. "I am excited about the opportunity to continue the development of the joint venture and to bring this mill on line in a timely manner," stated Hebert. "Additionally, I want to recognize the leadership of Mr. Barber as he has brought the venture successfully to this stage of development."
LP is a premier supplier of building materials, delivering innovative, high-quality commodity and specialty products to its retail, wholesale, homebuilding and industrial customers. Visit LP's web site at www.lpcorp.com for additional information on the company.
Georgia-Pacific divests pulping assets in Georgia and Mississippi
29 January 04 ATLANTA - Georgia-Pacific Corp. (NYSE: GP) and KoCell, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Koch Industries, Inc., today announced that the companies have signed a letter of intent for Koch to acquire Georgia-Pacific's non-integrated fluff and market pulp operations for $610 million, which includes assumption of $73 million of indebtedness.
Georgia-Pacific expects the sale, consisting of assets and the stock of GP's Brunswick Pulp & Paper subsidiary, will generate net after-tax proceeds to Georgia-Pacific equivalent to an all asset sale at approximately $735 million. Specific terms of the sale were not disclosed pending final agreement between the parties.
Included in the sale are Georgia-Pacific's pulp mills at Brunswick, Ga., and New Augusta, Miss., a short-line railroad servicing the New Augusta mill and the assets of two international sales offices. The sale, which is contingent upon execution of definitive agreements and customary regulatory approvals, is expected to be completed in the first quarter 2004.
The estimated after-tax cash proceeds will be $535 million. Georgia-Pacific will use proceeds from the sale to repay debt. In the 2003 fourth quarter, the company will record $106 million of goodwill impairment charges in accordance with applicable accounting standards. Georgia-Pacific expects to record income tax expense on this transaction of approximately $24 million upon closing.
"The transaction is another step in Georgia-Pacific's ongoing efforts to focus on differentiated businesses," said A.D. "Pete" Correll, chairman and chief executive officer. "Divestiture of these operations will generate significant cash toward debt reduction and further transition our company's portfolio of assets."
"This acquisition continues the effort by Koch companies to find strategic opportunities for which our capabilities can create the greatest value," said Jeff Gentry, senior vice president of Koch Industries. "Georgia-Pacific's fluff and market pulp operations play a vital role in supplying a wide variety of global customers with quality pulps. We hope to apply the operating, marketing and trading experience we've gained in other commodity businesses in combination with these excellent assets and a world-class workforce to position the business for even greater success in the future."
Annual fluff pulp capacity at the Brunswick mill is 826,000 tons. Fluff pulp is predominantly used in products such as disposable diapers, baby wipes and sanitary products. In 2002, the New Augusta mill had annual market pulp capacity of 628,000 tons. Goods commonly produced from market pulp include fine papers, postage stamps, tissue products and coffee filters. During 2003, New Augusta began production of fluff pulp to meet growing market demands. Combined, the facilities being sold employ approximately 1,100 people.
Headquartered at Atlanta, Georgia-Pacific is one of the world's leading manufacturers and marketers of tissue, packaging, paper, building products, pulp and related chemicals. With 2002 annual sales of more than $23 billion, the company employs approximately 61,000 people at 400 locations in North America and Europe. Its familiar consumer tissue brands include Quilted Northern(R), Angel Soft(R), Brawny(R), Sparkle(R), Soft 'n Gentle(R), Mardi Gras(R), So-Dri(R), Green Forest(R) and Vanity Fair(R), as well as the Dixie(R) brand of disposable cups, plates and cutlery. Georgia-Pacific's building products business has long been among the nation's leading suppliers of building products to lumber and building materials dealers and large do-it-yourself warehouse retailers. For more information, visit www.gp.com.
Koch Industries, Inc., based in Wichita, Kan., owns a diverse group of companies engaged in trading, operations and investments worldwide.