Leading Stories

Taylor Pulp employs 106 people and has an annual production capacity of 220,000 metric tons of bleached chemi-thermo-mechanical pulp.

The $2.1 billion expansion of the Guaiba pulp mill will add 1.3 million tons of eucalyptus pulp capacity, bringing CMPC's total hardwood and softwood pulp capacity to 4.1 million tons per year.

Hadera Paper Ltd. announced that it is selling its 49.9% stake in the Hogla-Kimberly diaper company to its partner Kimberly-Clark Corp. for US $160 million. This sum includes US $10 million, for Hadera Paper not to compete in the diaper market, for at least four years. Hadera Paper said that the sale will yield a profit after tax of US $126 million.

An employee burned on the job Friday morning at the International Paper mill in Ticonderoga, New York, has died.

MeadWestvaco Corp. is selling its European-based tobacco folding carton business. The Richmond, Virginia-based company said Thursday it has signed a definitive agreement with Swedish company AR Packaging Group AB.

Four US papermakers--Domtar Corp., Packaging Corp. of America, Finch Paper LLC and P.H. Glatfelter Co.--are lodging petitions with the US Dept. of Commerce and the International Trade Commission to protest "dumping" in the US of uncoated, sheeted printing and copying papers. The protesting companies are seeking duties on these papers coming from China, Indonesia, Brazil, Portugal and Australia.

UPM announced that it will permanently close down paper machine 2 at UPM Kaukas and paper machine 5 at UPM Jämsänkoski in Finland, along with paper machine 1 at the UPM Shotton mill in the UK. UPM said that production will end by the end of March 2015 at the latest, adding that employee consultation processes

Mohawk Industries, Inc. announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the IVC Group, which expands the company's position as the leading global flooring manufacturer. Mohawk is acquiring IVC for approximately $1.2 billion through a combination of cash and equity.

Loggers found a coworker unresponsive on Plum Creek timberland and drove to a high point in the mountains to get cell service to call 911 on Monday

MeadWestvaco's board has approved plans to spin off its specialty chemicals business into a separate, publicly traded company

Clearwater Paper Corp. announced that it has sold its specialty products business and mills to Dunn Paper Inc. for $113.5 million

Twin Rivers Paper Company a global leader in the manufacture of innovative printing and technical specialty papers, has announced the acquisition of specific envelope assets of the Cascades division in East Angus Quebec Canada.

Rayonier Inc. announced that Douglas Long, Director, Atlantic Region, U.S. Forest Resources, has been appointed to the newly created position of Vice President, U.S. Operations, effective immediately.

Bemis Company, Inc. announced that it has completed the sale of its global Pressure Sensitive Materials business to Platinum Equity, a California-based private equity firm. The transaction was completed for a purchase price of $170 million, subject to customary post-closing adjustments.

Andritz says it has received an order from Stora Enso to rebuild the fiberline, evaporation plant, recausticizing plant, recovery boiler, and recycled fiber plant at the Varkaus pulp mill in Finland

Sonoco announced that it has completed the acquisition of Weidenhammer Packaging Group (WPG), Europe's leading provider of composite cans along with composite drums and rigid plastic containers, for €286 million, or approximately $360 million, in cash.

The Multiwall Packaging Division, founded in 1950 as a division of Greif, produces large format multiwall paper bags used primarily in industrial applications of agricultural and food grade products. Multiwall operates facilities in Rosemount, Minnesota and Omaha, Nebraska.

Catalyst Paper Corporation announced Thursday that it has entered into an agreement with NewPage Corporation, NewPage Wisconsin System Inc. and Rumford Paper Company to purchase the Biron paper mill located in Wisconsin and the Rumford pulp and paper mill located in Maine for $74.0 million

Plum Creek Timber Company, Inc. has reached an agreement to sell approximately 165,000 acres of Montana and Washington forestland to The Nature Conservancy for $134 million

The Powell River No.9 paper machine will be idled on 31 October 2014 for a period of three weeks, with additional downtime possible based on market demands

Liberty Diversified International (LDI) announced that is has acquired San Diego-based Harbor Packaging Inc., a designer and manufacturer of corrugated packaging and Point of Purchase (POP) displays in Southern California and Mexico

Potlatch Corporation has signed a purchase agreement to acquire 201,000 acres of timberlands in Alabama and Mississippi from affiliates of Resource Management Service, LLC for $384 million

David Paul Wiser, chief financial officer of Pratt Industries, died 12 Oct 2014 of natural causes. Mr. Wiser worked at Pratt for the past 15 years.

Improvements at the mill include the installation of a new continuous dry kiln and a state-of-the-art planer mill, along with related infrastructure improvements. Project completion is expected by the third quarter of 2015, the company said.

The investment includes two separate production lines for anionic and cationic products which will produce FennoBond strength chemistries for tissue and also board customers