The announced creation of AbitibiBowater is not a done deal. It needs to get over competition hurdles and minor details like that. The outcome probably won’t be final before mid-year.

 In January, Meadow Lake Mechanical Pulp Inc. gained court approval to buy the mill and other assets owned by Meadow Lake Pulp Limited Partnership in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan. The buyer is related to Indonesia’s Sinar Mas whose pulp and paper division is better known as Asia Pulp and Paper (APP). The 300,000-adtonne/ year BCTMP mill, originally jointly owned by the provincial government and Edmonton, Alberta-based Millar Western, was under bankruptcy protection. Earlier reports put the selling price at $C38 million. APP is Meadow Lake’s biggest customer.
www.millarwestern.com

In Dec., Tembec Inc. permanently closed its market NBSK ECF pulp mill in Smooth Rock Falls, ON. The 200-kt/y-capacity mill was indefinitely idled at the end of July 2006. “The vintage and scale of this mill and its manufacturing costs relative to global competition, including the availability of affordable fibre, were all key factors in this decision,” said Yvon Pelletier, Tembec executive vice-president and president of the Pulp Group. An unusual charge of $C31 million relating to pension, severance and other items was recorded in the quarter ending December 30, 2006.
www.tembec.com.
 

Thunder Bay Fine Papers Inc. is a new private company which says it has signed a letter of intent with a Canadian investment group to permit the purchase and restart of the fine paper mill closed by Cascades Inc. in early 2006. Reports say that about $C35 million will be needed to get the mill re-started, scheduled for March. The mill was founded 1917 and owned by Abitibi-Price. In June 1993 it moved to employee ownership and was called Provincial Papers Inc. In April 1997, it was bought by Rolland Inc., a Cascades’ subsidiary. The capacity was about 170 kt/y of coated book and litho papers.
www.cascades.com.
 

Following a major diplomatic row between Argentina and Uruguay, Spain’s Grupo Empresarial ENCE said it has a new site for its planned mill in Uruguay. Originally planned for Fray Bentos, the mill will be built at Punta Pereira near the north shore of the Rio de la Plata about 60 km downstream from where the Uruguay River flows into the Rio de la Plata and downstream from Fray Bentos. Argentina opposed the original site because it feared pollution might affect tourism and fishing. Metsa-Botnia of Finland continues with its own plans to build a pulp mill in Fray Bentos.
www.ence.es.
 

Kadant Lamort SAS has commissioned a new waste handling system supplied to OYKA Kagit Ambalaj for its integrated pulp mill in Adana, Turkey. The 75,000- tonne/year kraft mill produces sacks. The system includes pulping and pulper cleaning, coarse cleaning and screening, and fine cleaners with 015-mm slotted screens.
www.kadanteurope.com

In Germany, pulp maker Mercer International Inc. increased its holding in the Stendal NBSK pulp mill by 7%, to 70%, for Euro 8.1 million. It is now also out of the paper business entirely having sold its equity interest in the Heidenau and Fahrbrucke paper mills, and an interest in a Swiss specialty paper mill. Mercer’s HQ is in Vancouver, BC.
www.mercerint.com