Richmond, British Columbia, Canada 13 June 2013 -- Catalyst Paper (TSX:CYT) is reaching higher to expand an already broad mechanical printing product range with the addition of Ascent, a coated three paper. Made at the Port Alberni mill on the only coated mechanical paper machine in Western North America, Ascent went from idea to market in the space of a few short months.

“Our product development team brought tremendous cross-disciplinary expertise to the initiative, along with the understanding that a new product had to be hands down excellent to meet the quality expectations of customers when there is so much choice in the marketplace,” said Tom Crowley, senior vice-president, sales and marketing. “Ascent was lab tested, trialled in pressrooms, and when it comes to printing, there’s no better proof of how well it shows, than Catalyst’s most recent sustainability report which was printed on Ascent.”

Catalyst has long specialized in lower-basis weight production across a wide range of papers from newsprint and directory grades, to specialty papers ideal for retail inserts and flyers, to high quality glossy mechanical papers popular with commercial printers, magazine, catalogue and book publishers.

“We’re adding a third branch to our coated family of products – Electracote, Pacificote and now Ascent – and they all offer the benefit of bulk without weight. It’s a great advantage for postage-sensitive customers who are bracing for another round of rate hikes,” said Mr. Crowley. “Like many of our products, Ascent is available under our Sage program for those who value the assurance of a top notch sustainability partner who reinforces their own brand promise to environmentally aware consumers.”  Port Alberni mill has one of North America’s greenest footprints with 91% of the energy coming from renewable biomass fuels and hydroelectric power.

Catalyst Paper manufactures diverse specialty mechanical printing papers, newsprint and pulp. Its customers include retailers, publishers and commercial printers in North America, Latin America, the Pacific Rim and Europe. With three mills, located in British Columbia, Catalyst has a combined annual production capacity of 1.5 million tonnes. The company is headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada and is ranked by Corporate Knights magazine as one of the 50 Best Corporate Citizens in Canada.