Longueuil, Québec, Canada, 17 December 2009 – SFK Pulp Fund (TSX: SFK.UN) is starting up the Saint-Félicien mill to resume production on 18 December 2009, four days ahead of the previously announced date. The shut-down of the mill was extended when additional repairs were required to the recovery boiler during the mill’s semi-annual maintenance outage.

Through the work of Saint-Félicien teams and the cooperation of key suppliers, the mill ultimately only reduced its fourth quarter production of northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp by 6000 metric tons instead of the previously announced 10,000 metric tons due to the additional repairs. In addition, the mill fulfilled all of its customers’ orders on schedule. The cost of these additional repairs will be covered by the company’s insurance, net of the deductible.

SFK Pulp (TSX: SFK.UN), a leader in the production and distribution of high-quality virgin and recycled kraft pulp, operates mills in Saint-Félicien, Québec, Canada; and in Fairmont, West Virginia, and Menominee, Michigan, USA. The SFK Pulp workforce totals approximately 500 employees. The company’s annual production capacity reaches 745,000 metric tons. The Saint-Félicien mill provides NBSK pulp to various sectors of the paper industry in Canada, the United States, and Europe, for use in the production of specialized products. The Fairmont and Menominee mills manufacture air-dried recycled bleached kraft pulp (RBK pulp) and primarily supply manufacturers of fine uncoated paper, household paper for commercial and industrial uses, and coated paper in the United States.