Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Port Hawkesbury; NS Grants $124.5 Million, Lower Power Rate Approved

Nova Scotia announces $124.5 million financial package for Port Hawkesbury Paper:
Last week the creditors of NewPage Port Hawkesbury voted in favour of the sale arrangement of the mill to Pacific West Commercial Corp.
With that approval, there were just 2 official decisions left before the sale of the mill will be finalized.
The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board announced today that they have approved the lower power rate for the mill.
That leaves just the decision of the Canada Revenue Agency who must approve the advanced tax rule.
Meanwhile, the Province of Nova Scotia has announced a $124.5 million financial package for the mill, that will be renamed “Port Hawkesbury Paper“.

NewPage & L.L. Bean Team Up for Project


NewPage announced today that it has teamed with L.L.Bean and the Wisconsin Woodland Owners Association (WWOA) in an effort to increase sustainably managed woodlands in six Central Wisconsin counties. The project partners will provide forest management assistance and third-party certification using certification standards of the American Tree Farm System to woodland owners at no cost.
The initial pilot program is targeted at WWOA-member woodland owners in the Central Sands Chapter, which includes: Wood, Portage, Waushara, Adams, Juneau and Marquette counties. To date, 42 landowners owning more than 6,000 acres of forest have committed to the program.

Cenveo Closing Envelope Plant


Cenveo Inc. will close its envelope plant in Kenosha by Oct. 19 in a move that will result in the loss of 103 jobs.
The plant at 5612 95th Ave. in Kenosha was owned by MeadWestvaco until Stamford, Conn.-based Cenveo bought that company last year.
"The closure of this facility will be permanent, and the entire manufacturing plant will be closed," the company said in a filing with the state Department of Workforce Development.

Meredith's "Eating Well" Raises Rate Base


Meredith has only owned EatingWell since last summer, but things are already going great for the magazine. Starting with the July/August 2013 issue, EatingWell will boost its rate base from 600,000 to 750,000. That’s an increase of 115 percent since Meredith acquired the brand.

Monday, August 20, 2012

North American Coated Paper July Ships

As reported by the Pulp & Products Council, July North American coated mechanical shipments rose +0.3% in July as compared to the same period last year. Demand increased +2.5% and imports jumped +39.8%. The operating rate was 90%. Coated woodfree shipments for the month fell -0.9%, demand decreased -1.6% and imports declined -26.2%. The operating rate was 88%.

EURO-GRAPH Releases Revisions

EURO-GRAPH reported revised H1 European figures as follows: coated mechanical shipments for H1 2012/H1 2011 fell -7.1%, demand declined -9.5% and exports grew +1.7%. Coated woodfree shipments were down -3%, demand fell -0.9% and exports decreased -8.5%. Supercalendered paper shipments declined -3.6%, demand was down -1.5% and exports decreased -12.2%.

Verso's Paterson Discusses Strategy

Verso's new boss, David J. Paterson, explains survival strategy:
Pick up a nice magazine or catalog and it's likely the glossy pages were made by a Memphis company called Verso Paper Corp.
But Verso has run up losses in three years that total $350 million.
So how does the Memphis company survive?
Verso’s new boss is adamant. The company, with annual sales that surpass $1 billion, will hang on.

Kruger Union Approves Proposal


Kruger Inc. is pleased to announce that active and retired unionized employees of Corner Brook Pulp and Paper have approved the proposal to apply funding relief measures to their pension plan's deficit.
These relief measures were essential to the Mill's ability to compete in the market and will enable the Company to pursue its assessment of the Mill's long-term viability. The next step will be for the Company to present a sustainability plan to its lenders and to the NL government within the coming weeks.

Norske Skog Plans Newsprint PM Closure


Norske Skog Tasman Mill in Kawerau faces an uncertain future as the company looks to cut costs.
The mill's 300 employees were told yesterday that the company proposed to close down one of the pulp and paper mill's two paper machines.
A statement from management said the mill needed to "reduce capacity by 150,000 tonnes in the face of declining global and regional demand for newsprint".

Norske Skog Makes Management Changes

Norske Skog announces changes in corporate management
Norske Skog's corporate management will be reduced from seven to three members with effect from 1. September 2012. The new team will consist of CEO Sven Ombudstvedt, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Rune Gjessing and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Trond Stangeby.

Nippon Paper 's Fight Back After Earthquake/Tsunami

Nippon Paper bounces back after the tsunami - Part II: One of Japan's giant pulp and paper companies, the Nippon Paper Group (NPG) has made a quick recovery after being hit hard when the devastating earthquake struck in the north of the country in March 2011. Read Part I here.

AF&PA Releases Kraft Paper Sector Report

AF&PA July 2012 Kraft Paper Sector Report: The American Forest & Paper Association released its July 2012 Kraft Paper Sector Report yesterday.  Total Kraft paper shipments were 138,000 tons, an increase of 3 percent compared to June 2012.  Total inventory was 78,700 tons this month.

MPA Names President, CEO

MPA Selects Mary Berner to Replace Nina Link as President, CEO:  The MPA, the Association of Magazine Media, has selected a new leader after 13 years—Mary Berner will replace outgoing Nina Link as the group’s new president and CEO effective September 17.
Most recently, Berner was president and CEO of Reader’s Digest Association (RDA), a position she vacated in April 2011. Berner had guided RDA through a pre-packaged bankruptcy, officially emerging from Chapter 11 protection in February 2010.  A year later, she left the company just as it named a new board of directors.

Condé Nast Invests in Flite


Magazine publishers have been criticized for being slow to meet advertisers’ demands for performance metrics, but Condé Nast is taking a step in that direction with an investment in Flite [1], a cloud-based platform that lets brands measure and adjust their ads in real time.
Condé Nast has been a client of Flite's along with other publishers including Hearst Magazines, Forbes, Tribune Interactive and Federated Media; after today's announcement, it now owns 11 percent of it.

Quebecor Inc. Reports Q2 Results

Quebecor Inc. today reported its consolidated financial results for the second quarter of 2012.
Second quarter 2012 highlights
Revenues: $1.09 billion, up $33.0 million (3.1%) from the second quarter of 2011.
Operating income:(1) down $0.7 million (-0.2%) to $357.8 million.
Net income attributable to shareholders: $67.0 million ($1.05 per basic share), up $11.8 million ($0.19 per basic share) from $55.2 million ($0.86 per basic share) in the second quarter of 2011.
Adjusted income from continuing operations:(2) $48.7 million ($0.77 per basic share), down $11.3 million ($0.16 per basic share) from $60.0 million ($0.93 per basic share) in the second quarter of 2011.

Friday, August 17, 2012

Catalyst Sells Elk Falls Site


Catalyst Paper today announced that it has reached agreement with Pacifica Deep Sea Terminals Incorporated on the sale of its Elk Falls site in Campbell River. The $8.6 million sale of the 400-acre industrial site and adjacent properties is expected to close September 5, 2012. It completes Catalyst's comprehensive bid review process which began earlier this year.
The former pulp and paper site was indefinitely curtailed in 2009 and closed permanently in 2010. The Elk Falls mill began operation in 1952, and at its peak, produced 784,000 tonnes of pulp, paper and kraft paper annually.

Port Hawkesbury Paper; Conference Call & More News


 Transcript to Port Hawkesbury Paper conference call:
Challenge of securing fiber:
As obstacles standing in the way of restarting the former NewPage Port Hawkesbury paper mill in Cape Breton are knocked down, one remains quietly under the radar.
Creditors of the NewPage mill voted overwhelmingly in support Wednesday of selling the Point Tupper facility to Pacific West Commercial Corp.
The positive vote leaves just two high-profile conditions that must be met before reopening the paper mill — an advanced tax ruling and a discounted power rate.
But a critical fibre agreement between the province and Pacific West, an affiliate of Stern Partners Inc. of Vancouver, remains unresolved.

NewPage Will Buy Stevens Point PM from Stora


As part of its newly filed plan to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, NewPage Corp. would buy one of its central Wisconsin paper machines from the mill's former owner.
The Miamisburg, Ohio-based manufacturer of coated paper currently leases the No. 35 machine at its Stevens Point mill from Stora Enso Oyj, said Cliff Bowers, a local NewPage spokesman.

AF&PA Releases Containerboard Report


The American Forest & Paper Association released its July 2012 U.S. Containerboard Statistics Report today.
Containerboard production rose 2.3% over June 2012 but fell 2.2% compared to same month last year. The month-over-month average daily production decreased 1%. The containerboard operating rate for July 2012 lost one point over June 2012 from 96.3% to 95.3%.

AF&PA Releases Paperboard Report

http://www.afandpa.org/
The American Forest & Paper Association has released its July 2012 U.S. Paperboard Report.
Total boxboard production decreased by 4.1 percent compared to July 2011 and decreased 0.4 percent from last month. Unbleached Kraft Folding production decreased over the same month last year but increased compared to last month. Total Solid Bleached Boxboard & Liner production decreased compared to July 2011 and last month. The production of Recycled Folding decreased compared to July 2011 but increased when compared to last month.