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The PM40 closed Friday, 3 October 2025, at 5452.

Get the latest PM40 updates by listening to the weekly Nips show and the PM40 Daily Show on Pulp & Paper Radio International.

The PM40 closed 3 October 2025 down 8.9% from the 4 October 2024 level.

In this issue of Disconnected Comparisons, we evaluate Sappi and Weyerhaeuser.

The Trump Administration's executive orders cut across dozens of industries. This searchable tool breaks down the orders and their impact.

Often, when the books are full and profitability is high, management is loath to take maintenance downtime. Is the opposite true--when profitability is down should we take more maintenance time?

It will replace one of the existing recovery boilers, increasing the mill's green energy production. Start-up is scheduled for the first quarter of 2027.

EPIQ Machinery inaugurated its new head office in downtown Montreal, nestled on the third floor of the iconic Canada Cement building. The occupancy of these new premises represents a significant milestone for the Canadian equipment manufacturer.

The pulp and paper industry faces constant pressure to optimize efficiency, reduce waste, and maintain quality while adapting to an evolving market.

Kadant Inc. announced it has completed the integration of Vayeron Pty Ltd, a pioneer of smart conveyor monitoring technologies. Kadant acquired Vayeron on August 21, 2024, and integrated it into its Material Handling reporting segment.

Kemira expands its offering into industrial water treatment services and has signed a purchase agreement to acquire Water Engineering, Inc., a company specialized in water treatment services with headquarters in Nebraska, USA, from Nolan Capital, Inc.

Konecranes has received an order from Valmet Paper Technology (China) Co., Ltd. to supply a comprehensive range of cranes for their facility relocation in Wuxi. The contract was booked in May 2025, with delivery scheduled for November 2025.

Valmet will deliver a Quality Control System (QCS) to Metsä Tissue's Mariestad mill in Sweden. The intelligent system will support the performance and ensure quality of the mill's tissue machine PM 35.

Sebright Products Inc., a leading manufacturer of waste handling and recycling equipment, is proud to announce that it has officially achieved ISO 9001 certification, the internationally recognized standard for quality management systems (QMS).

Sebright Products Inc., a leading manufacturer of waste handling and recycling equipment, is proud to announce that it has officially transitioned to a 100% employee-owned company. This milestone marks a significant step in the company's commitment to empowering its workforce and ensuring long-term sustainability and growth.

The pulp and paper industry is navigating a period of profound transition. Consolidation among global producers, demographic shifts in the workforce, and ongoing ERP migrations are reshaping how mills approach operations. At the center of these changes is a fundamental question: what role should Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) play in the next decade of pulp and paper?

Toscotec will supply a complete rebuild of PM3's drying section to Papeterie le Bourray mill in Saint-Mars-la-Brière, France. This marks a repeat order for Toscotec, following the successful PM4 rebuild in 2020 where a new headbox helped the mill achieve its target.

The start-up of the new paper machine PM 8n is scheduled for the end of 2026.

On September 10, 2025 Voith broke ground on a multi-million-dollar project that will expand and modernize its roll service center in West Monroe, Louisiana - adding more than 20 new jobs and supporting the local economy.

Pete Hoekstra says he hopes the United States and Canada can strike a deal on softwood lumber, an issue that predates both of Donald Trump's terms in Washington.

Western Forest Products will curtail lumber production at its British Columbia sawmills by 50 million board feet in the second half of 2025, equal to 6% of its annual lumber capacity. The company attributes the reduction to weak markets, higher U.S. softwood lumber duties imposed in August 2025, and limited economic log supply, according to Western Forest Products.

Canfor Corporation announced today that its 77%-owned subsidiary, Vida AB, has completed the acquisition of AB Karl Hedin Sågverk.

Graphic Packaging International was voluntarily dismissed from the case.

The Michigan Attorney General's Office announced it has reached two settlements with current and past owners of a paper mill in White Pigeon.

We hereby announce that our Australian consolidated subsidiary, Paper Australia Pty Ltd ("Opal") has today commenced legal proceedings against the Victorian Government in the Supreme Court of Victoria following the Government's breach of the Wood Pulp Agreement.

After leaks in pipes at the Port Townsend Paper Company (PTPC) spilled wastewater into Port Townsend Bay on two occasions earlier this year, the Washington Department of Ecology has fined the mill a total of $20,000 for the two water quality violations.

Felix Schoeller is continuing its Reinvent Strategy with an extensive Euro 13 million investment package. Over the next two years, the specialty paper manufacturer will invest specifically in enhancing the competitiveness and sustainability of its German facilities. The package comprises four projects across the company's sites in Osnabrück, Weißenborn, Günzach, and Neustadt.

Huhtamaki is planning another expansion of its Hammond plant just a year after completing a $100 million expansion, Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said.

JBM Packaging, a leading provider of eco-friendly paper packaging and contract packaging services, broke ground on the construction of a new 52,500-square-foot building in Lebanon, Ohio. The building marks a significant step in JBM's continued growth as it celebrates its 40th anniversary. As the new home to JBM's expanding packing and kitting operations, it positions JBM to scale its operations for long-term growth opportunities in the years ahead.

Remaining focused on its vision of sustainable economic development, Kruger is on track to develop a new storage facility that will position Trois-Rivières as a major circular economy hub in Québec. Over the coming months, the Kruger Recycling Division will leverage the $16-M project to consolidate its collection and storage operations at its new site on chemin des Petites-Terres, in Trois-Rivières' Pointe-du-Lac district, near Kruger Packaging's Containerboard Mill, which is Québec's leading paper and paperboard recycler.

Hunt Forest Products, Tolko Industries Ltd. and Louisiana Economic Development Secretary Susan B. Bourgeois has dedicated what's being called Louisiana's newest and most technologically advanced sawmill in Bienville Parish.

The company is purchasing new equipment that will convert flat container board into corrugated boxes. This expansion will increase efficiency within the facility, improve production capacity by 50% and enable the production of larger corrugated boxes.

Greif, Inc., a global leader in industrial packaging products and services, announced that it has completed the previously announced sale of its timberlands business to Molpus Woodlands Group, on behalf of clients, for approximately $462 million after adjustments.

Ahlstrom, a global leader in sustainable fiber-based specialty materials, announces that it has completed the divestment of its abrasives business unit to Munksjö. The transaction marks a key step on Ahlstrom's transformation journey to become the preferred sustainable specialty materials company.

Strengthening Global Position in Waste Paper Recycling and Stock Preparation

The Molpus Woodlands Group, LLC (Molpus), a leading timberland investment management organization, has, on behalf of its clients, successfully purchased approximately 173,000 acres of timberland in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi combined.

Stora Enso has finalised the sale of approximately 175,000 hectares of forest land in Sweden, representing 12.4% of its total holdings in the country, for an enterprise value of SEK 9.8 billion, equivalent to Euro 900 million. The buyers include Soya Group, which acquires a 40.6% stake, and a consortium led by MEAG, the asset management arm of Munich Re, with a 44.4% stake. Stora Enso retains 15% ownership in the new structure.

Veritiv Operating Company, a leader in specialty packaging distribution, facility solutions and print products and solutions, announced that it has acquired Subotnick Packaging, an Oregon-based distributor of packaging products and equipment serving the building materials, food, e-commerce, and transportation industries.

Billerud has decided to launch a cost saving program targeting annualized savings of SEK 800 million. The planned cost savings will affect Billerud's European operations and Group functions globally and will include reduction of up to 650 positions.

The Norwegian Research Council (NFR) has awarded NOK 15 million to support Borregaard's innovation initiative, Biomer. The project aims to develop bio-based alternatives to polycarboxylates - fossil-based polymers commonly used in agriculture, industry, and household products.

The mill's increased capacity will create more than 600 new jobs in the province's forestry supply chain.

Following the death of longtime chairman and CEO Richard G. Verney on Sept. 10, Monadnock Paper Mills and Monadnock Non-Wovens have announced that former CFO Andrew Manns will return as CEO and operations will continue without interruption under the direction of the board and Manns.

Mondi welcomed international customers and partners to celebrate the start-up of its Duino mill in Italy following the successful conversion of its existing paper machine into a high-quality recycled containerboard machine.

Kap Paper said it has received $50 million in loans from the Ontario government, which helped provide short-term stability. It said it had approached Ottawa for funding, but the timing "doesn't appear to be aligning" for a solution to keep the Kapuskasing mill open.

Pregis®, a global leader in protective packaging, mailing & bagging, and flexible packaging solutions, opened a new 477,000-square-foot paper converting center in Elgin, Illinois, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 19, 2025. The facility will support over 500 manufacturing jobs and can produce more than 1 billion curbside recyclable paper packaging solutions annually.

Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. announced the resignation of Gabriela Garcia, the Chief Accounting Officer and Vice President, Corporate Controller, effective October 10, 2025. Her resignation was not due to any disagreements with the company.

After an initial mill closure announcement, efforts had been made to find a buyer. However, those efforts did not find success, and the company announced they would close on Aug. 10 and lay off 780 workers.

Lenzing plans to cut up to 600 jobs by the end of 2027 as part of a restructuring to streamline operations and increase efficiency.

Effective immediately, production will halt and operations at the company's Pilar, Argentina site will begin winding down. The company will continue to fulfill pre-existing commitments out of the site and ensure continuity for customers during this transition.

The change negotiations concern a total of slightly more than 2,000 employees. Possible measures could include redundancies and reorganisation of tasks and operations. The estimated need for reductions is up to 315 people, of which 155 are in Finland.

The reduction of personnel is 220.

The review is expected to be concluded by the end of 2026.

CO280 Solutions, a leading developer of carbon dioxide removal projects, announced that it was awarded Preliminary Front-End Engineering and Design (Pre-FEED) contracts to technology and engineering suppliers for a groundbreaking carbon removal project in Canada.

Ahlstrom, a global leader in sustainable fiber-based specialty materials, announces a major milestone in its sustainability journey with the implementation of a biomass boiler at the company's Rottersac site in France. This will reduce the site emissions with approximately 80% and significantly lowering the carbon footprint of products, benefiting Ahlstrom's customers. This location serves as a key hub for Ahlstrom's food packaging operations in Europe.

This new milestone represents significant and accelerated progress, positioning the Coalition at 45% of its goal to mobilize at least US$ 10 billion by 2030. Collectively, these commitments aim to protect or restore 3.65 million hectares of Brazilian forests.

The resulting CDR credits will be sold to buyers in the carbon market.

Saica Group, one of Europe's leading manufacturers of recycled paper for corrugated cardboard and sustainable packaging solutions, inaugurated the new biomass boiler at its Saica Paper site in Champblain-Laveyron, France.

Saint-Gobain Canada officially marked the completion of its expansion and sustainable upgrade project at its CertainTeed Gypsum plant in Sainte-Catherine, Quebec, transforming the facility into North America's first zero-carbon (scopes 1 and 2) gypsum wallboard plant and the largest in the world. First announced in 2022, Saint-Gobain completed major electrification upgrades allowing the plant to be solely powered by renewable electricity.

Sappi North America is concerned with the announcement from The Nature Conservancy regarding its agreement with Brookfield Renewable to acquire four hydroelectric facilities on the Kennebec River in Maine, including the Shawmut Dam.

No injuries were reported, and no buildings were damaged.

Employees of GreenFirst have been informed that, effective October 6, 2025, the Company will reduce sawmill operations at its Kapuskasing, Hearst, and Cochrane facilities for the equivalent of one week. The curtailment at the Kapuskasing sawmill could extend beyond this period, given the site's location and the additional challenges it may face.

Ottawa paramedics were called Wednesday and found a person was trapped under a forklift. The victim was declared deceased at the scene.

Employees at the facility said two men were burned in both incidents.

According to the WARN notice, 60 workers will be impacted by the closure, which will take effect December 1.

48 employees will be let go, in total, including 29 assemblers, two buyers, six inventory specialists, one inventory supervisor, one manufacturing supervisor, one parts coordinator, one parts and service manager, three quality control technicians, one quality supervisor, two shipping and receiving clerks, and one planner.

The maintenance shutdown of the UPM Kaukas pulp mill, which began in August, will be extended for two weeks until October 11, 2025. In addition, the UPM Pietarsaari pulp mill will be temporarily shut down for approximately two weeks in November.

A media release from the company said 107 employees were laid off at the facility in Dillard, an unincorporated community about 10 miles south of Roseburg. Work related to other product lines in Dillard will continue.

Stora Enso has issued a layoff warning that could affect around 60 employees at its operations in Skoghall and at the Gruvön sawmill in Grums.