Paper Industry M&A — The Consolidation Craze

The expansion will reverse a 1.3 percent drop in 2001, the first decline ever recorded in aggregate domestic capacity.

Historically, domestic paper and paperboard capacity rose at a 2.5 percent average annual rate in the 1980-1997 period, and 0.9 percent from 1998 through 2000.

Year 2000 paper and paperboard capacity (103.9 million tons) remains virtually unchanged from the level estimated by last year's survey. However, the 2001 level of capacity has been revised downward by 2 million tons (1.9 percent), to 102.6 million tons, primarily because large amounts of mills and machines that have been closed for at least one year or are in the process of being dismantled were removed.