Verso Corporation Announces SC Price Increase

Interfor Corporation announced plans to reduce its lumber production output in the first quarter of 2023 by at least 100 million board feet, or 8% of quarterly capacity, as economic conditions and market uncertainty continue to impact lumber demand. This temporary reduction in output is expected to be mostly concentrated outside of Interfor’s US South operating region. The Company currently expects to resume its normal operating schedule in April 2023, but will closely monitor market conditions and adjust its production plans accordingly

Pelican Lake First Nation and Witchekan Lake First Nation and Paper Excellence Canada announced today the signing of a Letter of Intent that sets out the intentions of all parties to build a collaborative relationship with each other in Saskatchewan. “We now have agreements with all the industries around us,” said Chief Peter Bill of the Pelican Lake First Nation. Chief Anne Thomas of the Witchekan Lake First Nation added, “First and foremost in establishing a partnership is standing on common ground with a vision based on positive values. Touring the mill gave me an insight to possible opportunities.”

The Finnish Paperworkers’ Union has issued a new strike announcement to UPM, declaring that their strike at UPM’s Finnish mills will be extended by two weeks until 5 February 2022, unless new agreements are reached before that. The Paperworkers’ Union’s strike at UPM Pulp, UPM Biofuels, UPM Communication Papers, UPM Specialty Papers and UPM Raflatac units in Finland started 1 January 2022. “If the members of the Paperworkers’ Union want to continue the strike, they naturally have every right to do so. UPM’s goal continues to be to start business specific negotiations with the union as soon as possible. Negotiations are the only way forward. It is important that the negotiations for new agreements begin with a forward-looking mindset and determination to find the best solution for each business and its personnel” says Jyrki Hollmén, Vice President, Labour Markets at UPM. Just before the strike started, UPM received from the Paperworkers’ Union an email proposal for a new collective labour agreement, without any prior negotiation contact. The proposal was practically the same old collective agreement, which expired at the end of 2021. UPM, however, aims to have genuine interactive negotiations on the new terms of labour.