GLG News by Council Members Knowledgeable on Paper Newsprint

International Paper has announced a definitive agreement to set up a 50:50 joint venture with Russia's largest pulp and paper group, Ilim Group, in fact this is the purchase by IP of 50% of Ilim Group for $650 million, the most the Russian government could be expected to allow. The deal was originally...

Smurfit-Stone’s sale of the Brewton, AL mill is a logical step after last year’s sale of the consumer packaging division and recycled boxboard mills to TPG Capital/Altivity. SSCC improves concentration on core business. The acquisition of this mill by Georgia-Pacific makes GP a bigger player in SBS...

Thailand is surrounded by countries needing to import fiber to meet their domestic paper & board requirements - Laos, Cambodia, Viet Nam, Malaysia, Myanmar Republic and of course China and India.  With low labor rates, fast growing plantations and favorable transportation costs, this country...

Tasmania's location makes it a prime candidate to be a major supplier to emerging markets in India, SE Asia and the Pacific rim. With 5 million hectares of E.Nitens plantations already producing chips (currently only for export), it is only natural to construct a local pulp mill to produce a value...

Pope & Talbot's announcement of a temporary capacity reduction at the Nanaimo, British Columbia mill is not likely to have a significant impact on the global northern bleached softwood kraft pulp market, but it might  be the "canary in the mineshaft." If the BC logging strike continues,...

A closer or perhaps an inside look is required when considering the current fate of the newspaper / media segment. While newspapers are routinely critical of their own efforts, with the same level of routine they neglect to inform about their position of dominance despite dips in circulation. ...

Russia has just raised export duty on unprocessed timber to a minimum of 10 Euros per m3, with further increases to 50 Euros per m3 by 2009. Russian timber has become important raw material for a number of countries and companies, who now fear that timber exports will become unprofitable and they will...

Will the new Pratt mill make the entire containerboard segment less attractive? What will be the impact on supply/demand, OCC costs and pricing- especially in view of the new Asian capacity that will come on in the next year? Will the affect all of the containerboard producers equally?

The strike by British Columbia logging and sawmill workers could have significant negative impact on pulp and paper producers due to chip shortages and increased chip prices. The companies most likely to be negatively impacted include Catalyst Papers, Pope & Talbot, and Howe Sound Pulp.

Having lived in Brazil from 1974 to 1995, and visiting there at least three times a year, I am struck by lack of public knowledge in the US, that Brazil has had alternative fuel for over 30 years in the form of ethanol. My last car in Brazil, a 2 liter Ford station wagon, was powered on 100% alcohol,...