4 INDUSTRY NEWS
Pulp Paper & Logistics
Sustainable forest objectives for International Paper in India
forest assets in India have been committed to with the signing of an agreement between the Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), and International Paper. The partnership will entail action
A
research, capacity building and academic exchange involving experts and researchers from both groups. Highlight of the agreement is the creation of the ‘IIFM – IP Paul Brown Center of Excellence’ (CoE) at IIFM, Bhopal, which will facilitate a number of activities. Both organisations will collectively advance applied research in the field of forestry, fibre sustainability and in forestry management with
Signing for forest sustainability: (left to right) Girdhar Kinhal, director of IIFM, Rampraveen Swaminathan, chairman of International Paper APPM and Ashok Lavasa, IAS Secretary
sharing of best practices, case studies and knowledge sharing. The collaboration also covers training and capacity building for students, researchers and professionals of IIFM. The functioning of the CoE will
be managed jointly by IIFM and International Paper, which will share its global best practices and will invest towards implementation of the objectives of the agreement. “International Paper has decades of knowledge of creating world-
Lumber tax in US is “a burden on international commerce”
A United States federal court has ordered the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to try again to provide “a reasoned and coherent treatment” for its decision to implement an order to collect taxes on softwood lumber shipments in North America. The decision in September
was in response to a motion by pulp and paper maker Resolute Forest Products that contested the lawfulness of the USDA’s ‘Softwood Lumber Checkoff’ order imposing the tax. According to the court, the
government’s explanation of its decision to exclude certain softwood lumber manufacturers
September/October 2015
from paying or voting on the tax “strains credulity”, and the USDA was either “hiding the ball” or else “ill informed” about the number of companies it had exempted. The court also reserved for another day Resolute’s claims that the order violates the US Constitution. The USDA instituted a tax in 2012 on all shipments of softwood lumber in North America as part of a scheme proposed by the Binational Softwood Lumber Council, which was created under the now-expiring 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement between Canada and the United States. Resolute – which operates 40
pulp and paper mills and wood products facilities in the US, Canada and South Korea, and has power generation assets in Canada – objects to paying the tax, which it considers an unnecessary additional burden on international commerce. In reaching his decision, US
District Court Judge Boasberg said, “Resolute is understandably upset by the agency’s evasion” and that Defendants’ interpretation of the law “is dubious for several reasons”. The USDA must now answer the questions posed by Judge Boasberg. Because the tax has been in place for many
wide range of activities that are expected to further the sustainable management of
class products through sustainable practices – methods that help to not only conserve natural resources but actually contribute significantly to maintain and grow the ecosystem,” said Rampraveen Swaminathan, president of International Paper - India. “This partnership, as with several
others that we have forged globally in the past, will allow us to share our learnings with the industry and academia to make sustainability a part of life. We are immensely pleased to be partnering with a leading academic institution like IIFM to create this platform as it gives an opportunity to share our experience and expertise with the paper and pulp industry and contribute to the country’s sustainability efforts in the future.”
years and is part of a complex administration, Judge Boasberg is permitting it to continue while waiting for answers. However, should the USDA not come up with satisfactory answers, the court may be forced to terminate the tax, and require USDA to provide restitution to Resolute for all funds that it has been required to pay. • Sales at Resolute Forest
Products in the first half of 2015 were US$1.85 billion, down 12.4 per cent compared with the same period in 2014. It made a net loss of $37m, but that was less than the loss of $52m in the first half of 2014. “Our continued focus on costs helped to deliver solid results considering the challenges that continue to pressure our industry,” said chief executive Richard Garneau.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36