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The PM40 closed Thursday, 1 April 2021, at 4188.

Get the latest PM40 updates by listening to the weekly Nips show and the PM40 Daily Show on Pulp & Paper Radio International.

The PM40 closed 1 April 2021 up 48.1% from the 3 April 2020 level.

In this issue of Disconnected Comparisons, we evaluate Mercer International and RELX Group.

Reported insider trading since the last issue of PaperMoney.

Several clients and colleagues have recently remarked that, with the world coming out of Covid-19 (or a least hoping we are coming out of Covid-19), there is a new urgency and frenetic pace about work and play for that matter. This is a recipe for accidents.

Global technology company ABB is leading a major installation of new drives, control systems and quality control solutions (QCS) for Iggesund Paperboard in Sweden, driving increased safety, higher availability and more stable operations for the board mill.

Andritz has received an order from UPM to provide industrial maintenance services for its new mill in the city of Paso de los Toros, Uruguay. The mill will have an annual production capacity of 2.1 million tons of bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp when it starts up in the second half of 2022.

Andritz has successfully started up a complete continuous low-consistency (LC) pulping system at Papeleira Coreboard in Portugal. The new Andritz LC pulping system installed features several design upgrades:

Andritz has received an order from the Danish energy company Fjernvarme Fyn Produktion A/S to deliver a new biomass boiler plant complete with auxiliary equipment for their "Bio Blok 2" project.

The Brazilian wood-based materials producer Guararapes Paineis, S/A. placed an order for an MDF plant with Siempelkamp.

Solenis, a leading global producer of specialty chemicals, will increase prices by 7 to 15 percent on all process and water treatment product lines across the EMEA region, effective immediately or as customer contracts allow.

Solenis, a leading global producer of specialty chemicals, will increase prices by up to 20 percent on all wet strength resins in EMEA, effective immediately or as contracts allow. The price increase is necessary due to lack of raw material availability, escalating key raw material costs and a surge in freight costs that has led to additional pressure on our global supply chain.

Valmet has previously supplied two Advantage DCT 200TS tissue lines, started up in 2011 and 2016, to the same mill.

Valmet will deliver the world's first artificial intelligence (AI) based Valmet IQ Web Inspection System (WIS) to Progroup's paper machine PM2 in Eisenhüttendstadt, Germany. The new machine vision system targets to increase the containerboard machine speed even further.

Valmet will supply Valmet IQ Moisturizer system to DS Smith Contoire-Hamel in France. The new system will be installed on DS Smith Contoire-Hamel's paper mill's paper machine PM1. The target of the investment is to improve the moisture profile of the board for better corrugated performance. The delivery is scheduled by the middle of April 2021.

Valmet will supply Valmet IQ Quality Control System and Valmet IQ Moisturizer to Arkhangelsk Pulp and Paper Mill, JSC, in Novodvinsk, Russia.

Servera® papers offer the highest kit level for a paper free of fluorochemicals, while being cost-effective. These eco-friendly papers are available in bleached and natural options. Manufacturing with natural pulp integration, Ahlstrom-Munksjö offers customers the product solutions they desire to address end-user sustainability needs in the QSR market.

Charmin has released its NFT(P) crypto collection - three original pieces of digital TP art celebrating Charmin's mission to help everyone Enjoy the Go both in real life and virtually. Charmin will be rolling out the auction of the first-ever NFT (non-fungible token) art by a toilet paper brand with proceeds benefitting Direct Relief.

Mondi, global leader in packaging and paper, has started up new production lines for melt-blown nonwoven fabric and medical face masks at its site in Gronau, Germany to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Smurfit Kappa has designed a new integrated packaging system following close collaboration with Signify, the world leader in connected LED lighting systems, by designing the BioShift UV-C Chamber Case, used to ship and transport UV-C lights that have significant antibacterial properties, which kill germs and viruses.

Tetra Pak announces it is ready to deploy its portfolio of tethered cap solutions. The portfolio brings numerous benefits to food and beverage manufacturers and consumers, as the company builds on its vision of the most sustainable food package.

The Board of Directors of Ahlstrom-Munksjö Oyj has resolved to apply for the termination of public trading in the shares of Ahlstrom-Munksjö and for the delisting of its shares from the official list of Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd and from the main market of Nasdaq Stockholm AB.

The massive ship blocking the Suez Canal may prove to be a titanic pain in the butt -- by reportedly unleashing a toilet paper shortage not seen since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

Kimberly-Clark Corporation announced that it is notifying customers in the U.S. and Canada of plans to increase net selling prices across a majority of its North America consumer products business. The increases will be implemented almost entirely through changes in list prices and are necessary to help offset significant commodity cost inflation.

Finnish forestry products company Stora Enso says it plans to stop producing wood pulp in Joensuu for strategic and economic reasons, but did not confirm ethical factors played a role despite recent adverse publicity about exports to China.

Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc. has announced a new distribution partnership with Case Paper, one of the largest privately held distributors and converters of paper and board for the printing and packaging industries. Case Paper will be the exclusive distribution partner for Monadnock in the Florida market.

Sonoco ThermoSafe, a unit of Sonoco and the leading global provider of temperature-assured packaging solutions, and Unilode Aviation Solutions, the market leader in outsourced Unit Load Device (ULD) management and repair services, announce a partnership for the maintenance, repair and handling of Sonoco ThermoSafe's passive bulk temperature-controlled containers at several key locations. This cooperation will play an important role in enabling the safe and efficient transport of pharmaceuticals and other temperature-sensitive products around the world.

Pelican Lake First Nation, Witchekan Lake First Nation, and Tolko Industries Ltd. announced that they have signed an Agreement in Principle that will enhance the ability for Pelican Lake and Witchekan Lake First Nations to further their expertise as a logging contractor.

Paper Excellence already has a 49% stake in Eldorado and had sought the arbitration to be allowed to acquire the remaining stake, as determined by a 2017 sale contract.

A fire that cost the lives of two contractors during maintenance at Canton's Evergreen Packaging paper mill ended in hefty fines for two contractors.

Verso Corporation, owner of the now defunct Luke paper mill, agreed to clean up toxic waste that seeped into the Potomac River from the mill and pay the state of Maryland $650,000. The actions are part of a settlement to resolve lawsuits over the pollution.

DS Smith has announced a £100 million of combined investment in two new packaging sites in Italy and Poland in response to increased customer demand.

Metsä Fibre is building the world's most modern sawmill in Rauma, Finland. The construction work began in May 2020, and the sawmill's foundation stone was laid on Thursday 25 March 2021. Due to the coronavirus situation, the foundation stone was laid by Harri Haapaniemi, Project Director, and Liisa-Maija Perävainio, Sawmill Director, without external participants.

After breaking ground two and a half years ago, Green Bay Packaging produced the first reel of paper at its new paper mill.

North Pacific Paper Company is pushing further into the recycled paper market, adding a new drum pulper that will support an existing 400 mill jobs and produce recycled packaging papers from waste material previously sent to China.

Pratt Industries is America's fifth-largest corrugated packaging company and the world's largest, privately-held 100% recycled paper and packaging company. The new facility, called the Intermodal Logistics Center, is part of a 502,428 square foot, $32.9M investment being constructed by Taylor & Mathis.

Smurfit Kappa has announced a further investment of over €25 million at its Pruszkow 'mega-plant' located in central Poland. This investment forms part of the accelerated capital investment programme following the company's €660 million equity capital raise which took place in November 2020.

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. says it has begun producing and shipping building panels from the Chambord, Que., oriented strand board (OSB) mill it inherited with its recent $4-billion all-stock takeover of rival Norbord Inc.

Private equity firm Apollo Global Management Inc. is exploring a sale of textbook publisher and education technology company McGraw-Hill Education that could fetch up to $6 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter.

Essity is acquiring the distribution rights to the wound care technology Sorbact® in Australia and New Zealand from the Australian company Bayport Brands. In 2020, sales of Sorbact® in the region amounted to AUD 1.7m (approximately SEK 11m).

Essity is acquiring the distribution rights to the wound care technology Sorbact® in Australia and New Zealand from the Australian company Bayport Brands. In 2020, sales of Sorbact® in the region amounted to AUD 1.7m (approximately SEK 11m).

Glatfelter Corporation announced the antitrust regulatory process has concluded and it may now proceed with the previously announced acquisition of Georgia-Pacific's U.S. nonwovens business for $175 million.

UFP Industries, Inc. announced that Handprint, the growing home and décor business unit of UFP Retail Solutions, has signed an agreement to purchase the operating assets of Walnut Hollow Farm, Inc. Pending customary closing conditions, the acquisition is expected to close by the end of April 2021.

International Paper has purchased two state-of-the-art corrugated box plants in Spain, further growing its capabilities in Madrid and Catalonia, the largest industrial regions in the country.

Multi-Color Corporation, one of the largest label companies in the world, announced the acquisition of Melbourne, Australia-based Herrods, a leading provider of in-mold label (IML) solutions in Australia and New Zealand. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Judging from a message sent to at large City Councilor Derek Medved Monday, ST Paper's efforts to purchase Verso Corp.'s shuttered Duluth mill aren't going very well.

Pixelle Specialty Solutions LLC announced it has completed two strategic investments that will further strengthen its portfolio and enhance service to new and existing customers. On March 31st, Pixelle acquired the specialty paper business Rollsource from Veritiv Corporation. On April 5th, Pixelle acquired the carbonless rolls and security papers business from Appvion Operations Inc.

A provision in a bill recently approved by the Minnesota House of Representatives could help breathe new life into the Duluth paper mill, following Verso Corp.'s June decision to shut the mill down.

Sonoco announced it has closed on the sale of its Display and Packaging business in the United States to Hood Container Corporation for $80 million in cash.

First Quality Tissue in Anderson is moving forward with an expansion project that will create 200 jobs for the area, bringing the company's projected community impact to more than $400 million in the coming decades.

The capital cost of the initial plant is approximately $300 million and will be funded by a combination of project debt, project equity, government funding and sponsors' equity contributed by Fortune 500 corporate partners who remain confidential at this time.

Södra's new cross-laminated timber, CLT, is a fast mover in the market. For this reason, Södra is investing in a new facility that will increase the production capacity of timber frames ten-fold. The facility is expected to be commissioned in mid-2022.

The BoxMaker, a leading Pacific Northwest manufacturer of corrugated packaging, broke ground on a new production plant in Lowell, Arkansas, on March 16, 2021 as part of a multi-million-dollar investment to effectively address growing demand across the country for digitally produced packaging and displays.

Following on the heels of Tony Mollica's appointment to CEO of Twin Rivers, the company continues to build on its play to win strategy with the announcement of six new, highly experienced cross-functional team members.

UPM Timber has completed the employee consultation process started in early February on its plans to improve profitability and strengthen competitiveness. Based on the negotiations, the number of positions at UPM Timber will decrease by 43.

Progress on West Fraser Timber's new lumber manufacturing complex in Dudley, Georgia remains on track with management's initial expectations. Substantial portions of the new mill are being commissioned and are ramping up, with the new site expected to be fully operational by the end of the 2Q 2021.

UPM recently announced new innovations in responsible wood construction.

Domtar's support of American Forest Foundation (AFF) biodiversity conservation initiatives is helping protect at-risk or endangered wildlife, especially in the Southeastern United States.

Hygiene and health company Essity's tissue production facility in Lilla Edet, Sweden wants to become the world's first large-scale tissue facility with fossil CO2 emission-free production. By completely replacing natural gas with biogas, the production facility will reduce its fossil CO2 emissions to zero during normal operations.

In February 2021, the Land and Environmental Court in Östersund upheld an appeal from the Skydda Skogen (Protect the Forest) association regarding a number of harvesting notifications on SCA land in Jämtland and Härjedalen. The Court also found in favor of a harvesting ban at the harvesting sites in question. SCA is now appealing this ruling to the Supreme Land and Environmental Court.

Police responded to a double shooting at the Dixie Pulp & Paper facility on Monday, March 15 around 11:30 p.m.

We are so excited to announce the opening of our new branch facility in Kansas City, MO! With the growth and expansion of our customer base and sales representation into the Midwest, Kansas City is a prime location to service existing and new customers throughout Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska.

In early April, Catalyst Crofton, a Paper Excellence company, will resume regular seasonal operation of the Cowichan Lake weir (dam) that regulates water flow out of Cowichan Lake in Canada.

The facility, which is approximately 335,000 square feet and sits on 143 acres, will initially start with three pelleters and a 100,000-ton capacity, but has the infrastructure for eventual expansion to 300,000 tons and nine pelleters.

Emergency crews responded to a report of a machine on fire at a North Charleston paper mill Friday night, March 26.

Sappi Limited, a global leader in dissolving wood pulp as well as graphic, packaging and speciality papers and biomaterials, announced on 3 December that Marco Eikelenboom (53), previously Vice President Marketing & Sales, Graphic Papers at Sappi Europe, had been appointed as CEO of Sappi Europe as from 1 April 2021. Marco Eikelenboom succeeds Berry Wiersum (65), a 40-year veteran of the industry in Europe, who retired at the end of March 2021.

Our goal is for you to recognize Verso as a customer-centric organization that delivers best-in-class paper and pulp products with the highest level of service. We know that we have opportunities to improve in this area, and are working diligently to develop new initiatives to do just that.

In an effort to help ensure a stable and growing future, ND Paper has established a new program to build financial leaders for its company.

A man was airlifted from a packing supply factory after fire crews freed him when his hand became stuck under a roller in a machine Thursday, March 11, in Collegeville.

Tim Campbell, founder of Jackson Paper, in Sylva, N.C., died March 25. He was 80. He converted a mill previously owned by Mead to produce recycled medium, and the mill continues to thrive today.