Ahlstrom-Munksjö Rhinelander plant announces temporary machine idle

Neenah, Inc. announced that it had completed the previously announced agreement to acquire Global Release Liners, S.L., the parent company of Industrias de Transformacion de Andoain, S.A. (“ITASA”), from Magnum Capital and other minority shareholders. The Company funded the purchase price of approximately €205 million, inclusive of debt extinguishment and subject to customary closing adjustments, through available cash-on-hand and an upsizing of Neenah’s existing Term Loan B from $200 million to $450 million. Interest rates on the Term Loan B are variable and are currently at 3.5 percent. Neenah will continue to maintain a strong liquidity position, with ample availability under its revolving credit line and a projected debt to EBITDA of approximately three times after closing the transaction.

West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Georgia Pacific’s oriented strand board (“OSB”) mill near Allendale, South Carolina for approximately $280 million. The transaction is anticipated to close following successful completion of U.S. regulatory reviews and satisfaction of customary conditions. Management will provide an update and further details about the transaction on West Fraser’s third quarter earnings call on October 28, 2021. All dollar amounts in this news release are expressed in U.S. dollars. The Allendale facility, which initially began producing OSB in 2007, has been idle since late 2019 and has an estimated stated capacity of approximately 760 million square feet (3/8-inch basis). The Company intends to invest an estimated $70 million of additional capital to upgrade and optimize the facility in preparation for its restart and this upgrade is anticipated to take approximately nine months to complete. The mill is expected to directly employ approximately 135 people and be one of the lowest cost mills in the Company’s OSB portfolio after the optimization is complete and the mill has ramped up to full production, a process that typically takes 18-24 months after restart.

Dr.-Ing. Fabian Gaus, 39, has joined the management board of LEIPA Group GmbH on 1 July 2020. He takes over the newly created function of Chief Sales Officer (CSO). His central field of responsibility in this function will be the goal- and future-oriented development of the LEIPA Group's sales activities. With a doctoral degree in mechanical engineering, Dr. Gaus has extensive knowledge in the manufacturing and energy industries, and with asset-heavy businesses in particular. Most recently, Dr. Gaus was Managing Director and CFO of Innogy Renewables US and Georgia Biomass, two subsidiaries of European utility innogy group in the United States. Georgia Biomass operates the largest wood pellet plant in the world.