Kimberly-Clark Announces Price Increases for North American Consumer Products Business

First Quarter of 2022 Highlights: First quarter 2022 (“Q1 2022”) net earnings were $34.0 million, or $0.18 per share (diluted), compared to $8.0 million, or $ 0.04 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2021 (“Q4 2021”), which was the Company’s first full quarter operating its acquired forest-products assets *Lumber pricing improved significantly in Q1 2022 and outlook continues to be strong for the remainder of the second quarter of 2022 and beyond, with continued volatility but above-historical levels expected *Asset-backed revolving loan facility of $65.0 million was undrawn at quarter end and has remained undrawn at May 11, 2022. Seasonal log inventory build up continued to be funded from strong operating cash flow *The Company plans to conclude its Transition Services Agreement with Rayonier Advanced Materials by end of May 2022

The construction of Empire Recycled Fiber mill in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania is scheduled to commence this fall. The work on the mill project had started almost a year ago. The financing for the project is expected to close during Q3 2020. The construction works may take 12-14 months, thus gearing up for a 2022 startup. Upon full operations, the plant will employ approximately 110 full-time manufacturing employees. According to company press release, the mill will be constructed at an investment of $125 million. The facility will take in over 500,000 tons per year of recovered fiber and produce almost 440,000 tons per year of recycled paper pulp to be used as raw material by paper manufacturers.

Ahlstrom has successfully started the production of new, calendered, and embossed synthetic filter media for the first commercial orders from its Huyn-Poong plant in South Korea. The new materials offer extended filter lifetime and generate less flow restriction due to a higher available surface area. This makes these media a more sustainable alternative to competing materials. A longer filter lifetime combined with outstanding durability is a key feature helping to sustain filter operations and boost performance. This not only saves costs associated with frequent filter replacements but also reduces energy consumption and minimizes environmental impacts by lowering emissions. “The new calendering and embossing capabilities further advance synthetic filter media solutions. They improve durability and open a wide range of possibilities for extended performance, as well as improving the sustainability of filtration units. This allows us to better serve growing needs in high-performance filtration materials,” comments Kathrin Hueppe, Head of Filtration, Asia.