4 INDUSTRY NEWS
Decline in US demand hits IP’s Courtland mill
I
nternati onal Paper is planning to close its biggest paper mill in the US at Courtland, Alabama,
in the face of declining demand for papers for forms, envelopes, labels, copiers, printers and magazines. The closure, which will be carried out in stages up to the end of the fi rst quarter of 2014, will cut IP’s capacity for making uncoated and coated paper by 950,000 tons. “These decisions are especially
diffi cult because of the impact to long-serving and hard-working
employees, their families and the surrounding communiti es,” said John Faraci, chief executi ve of Internati onal Paper. “This decision to permanently close capacity is primarily being driven by demand decline for uncoated freesheet paper products in the United States.” At a UBS investors conference he said that it was necessary to adjust capacity as demand for these papers had been shrinking by 4 per cent in the US as consumers switched to electronic billing. The announcement was made
aft er IP revealed second quarter sales up by 2.8 per cent to $7.3bn, a dividend increase of 17 percent and that it would buy back $1.5 billion of stock.
The Courtland Mill was built in 1971, covers 2,200 acres and with 1,100 employees operati ng its four papermaking lines is one of the biggest employers in Lawrence County.
IP said it was committ ed to helping the employees. “We explored numerous business and re-purposing opti ons for the Courtland Mill, but concluded
John Faraci
that permanently closing the mill best positi ons the business for the future,” said Printi ng and Communicati ons Papers senior vice president Tim Nicholls. IP’s Printi ng and Communicati ons
Papers business will from next year operate four mills focused on uncoated freesheet, bristols and speciality paper markets: Two uncoated freesheet paper mills, Eastover, South Carolina, and Riverdale, Alabama; two specialty paper mills, Georgetown, South Carolina, and Ticonderoga, New York. “IP’s Printi ng Papers business
remains a valuable and strategic part of IP. Our manufacturing, commercial and supply chain capabiliti es are strong, as is our commitment to serving the North American uncoated freesheet market,” said Nicholls.
The Printing Charity trebles the number of people it helps
The Printi ng Charity has trebled the number of people it has helped in the industry in the past four years with three quarters of the fi nancial grants to recipients outside London and the south east of the UK. At a recepti on hosted by
Baroness Dean of Thornton-le- Fylde at the House of Lords in July, Lord Black of Brentwood, executi ve director of the
September 2013
Telegraph Media Group, presented the Print Futures Awards to this year’s 17 winners. “We are celebrati ng the successes of the charity, which has been caring for people since 1827,” said Lord Black. “It’s tremendous to report the increase in the number of people the charity has helped but we want to do more. We want to help 2,000 people by 2017 and to achieve
that we need everyone in our industry to spread the message that The Printi ng Charity is there for people and their families.” Jon Wright, chairman of The
Printi ng Charity, spoke about links the charity has formed with The Prince’s Trust, which has now helped 39 young people set up their own businesses, and the re-establishment of a Yorkshire network to promote the charity in
Lord Black of Brentwood
the region. He also outlined new initi ati ves the charity’s Trustees will consider this year, including research to help people who have been made redundant from the printi ng industry and want to work again.
Pulp Paper & Logistics
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