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Asia Symbol (Guangdong) Paper has successfully started up its tissue production line delivered by Andritz for its mill in Xinhui district, Jiangmen City, Guangdong Province, China.

Closures and cutbacks

Reported insider trading since the last issue of PaperMoney.

The negotiations affect all workers at Stora Enso's packaging materials mills in Oulu, Varkaus, Heinola and Anjalankoski.

Cosmo Specialty Fibers Inc. has gained new ownership following more than 12 years since the mill was bought by The Gores Group, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm, in 2010. The United Kingdom-based firm, Charlestown Investments, is the new owner.

The closing is expected to take place on January 31, 2023.

The pulp line is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2023 and is anticipated to impact approximately 300 positions across the organization by the end of the year.

Progroup has invested around Euro 72 million in the project at the site, which covers around 28,000 square metres, and created 50 new jobs.

Mondi plans to invest around €200 million in converting the existing lightweight coated mechanical paper machine at the mill into a high-quality, cost-competitive recycled containerboard machine with an annual capacity of around 420,000 tonnes.

International Paper intends to build a new 20,000-square-foot building at the Cedar Rapids mill that would be home to a boiler and water treatment plant. Together, they would provide steam power to the Cedar Rapids facility. Previously, the plant used the coal-powered Prairie Creek Station. However, that facility is being closed.

The indefinite curtailment of Perry Sawmill will impact approximately 126 employees and will reduce West Fraser's US lumber production by 100 million board feet.

Paper Excellence Group, a private company controlled by an Indonesian billionaire, is poised to expand in Canada's forestry industry by diversifying into the lumber sector with its contentious takeover of Resolute Forest Products Inc.

LSC Communications, which is closing two plants in Lancaster County, and will lay off about 656 people, will move the work at those two locations to its long-run print facilities in Maple Grove, Minnesota and Warsaw, Indiana.

For the third time, members from three united steel workers unions have voted to reject what Westrock paper mill representatives call the company's last, best, and final offer.

The Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) paper mill in Jackson has called employees back to work and is expected to resume production Monday, Jan. 9.

Canfor Corporation will extend sawmill curtailments in British Columbia (B.C.) due to ongoing weak market conditions and the lack of available economic fibre, company announced.

Sylvamo, the world's paper company, closed an agreement Monday acquiring Stora Enso's uncoated freesheet paper mill in Nymölla, Sweden, for 150 million euros. The mill, strong brands it produces and team members who operate and support the facility are now officially part of Sylvamo.

The acquisition of De Jong Packaging Group will begin a new phase of renewable packaging solutions within Stora Enso. On top of Stora Enso's existing corrugated facilities, De Jong Packaging Group has 16 sites in total in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and the UK. Most of the sites are corrugated converting and packaging wholesale facilities and they include two corrugators, 16 processing machines and 46 tray erectors. Together they produce 2,5 million boxes a day.

Austrian Mayr-Melnhof Holz sold its sawmill MM-Efimovsky in Russia to Aspek-Les, according to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities of Russia.

Stora Enso has completed the acquisition of the Netherland-based company De Jong Packaging Group, one of the largest corrugated packaging producers in the Benelux countries. The acquisition announced in September 2022 with an enterprise value of approximately EUR 1,020 million was closed following regulatory clearances and employee consultation.

International Paper announced changes to its senior leadership team today including the retirement of a long-serving executive and organizational shifts to enhance agility in serving customers and driving profitable growth.

CellMark is introducing a new division: CellMark Packaging & Paper. The division is the result of a merger of its two existing divisions, CellMark Packaging and CellMark Paper.

Ladies and gentlemen, the first class of inductees to the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame in Appleton, Wisconsin was inducted more than two decades ago in 1995, and today, more than 150 papermaking innovators and legends have been enshrined. This month, we profile the late Tad Bretting, who was president and CEO of C.G. Bretting Manufacturing Company in Ashland, Wisconsin, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999.

The PM40 closed Friday, 13 January 2023, at 5373.

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 13 January 2023 up 12.1% from the 14 January 2022 level.