Business Management - M&A

Transaction will strengthen position as global supplier of graphic arts consumables LUXEMBOURG—20 April 2007—Flint Group, the world’s largest privately-owned supplier to the printing, converting, and graphic arts industries, has announced an agreement in principle to acquire Day International, a world leader in the supply of printing blankets, sleeves, image transfer media and pressroom chemicals. Day will operate as a business unit within Flint Group, and the combined group will rank among the largest pressroom consumable suppliers in every region it serves. Nearly 8300 employees will serve customers from 170 sales, service and manufacturing locations on five continents. Combined revenues for 2007 are estimated to

WILLISTON, VT—1/18/07—KBA North America, a leading press manufacturer, is announcing an exclusive distributorship in the U.S. and Canada with Vegra, an international company specializing in the development of high-quality and environmentally-friendly products for the graphic arts industry. The new consumables line, which can be ordered online through http://consumables.kba-usa.com, includes fountain solutions, coatings, washes, and varnishes, and is designed to work with all printing press manufacturers and available to all printers, regardless of their press models. “We are pleased to announce this exclusive distributorship with Vegra,” says Ralf Sammeck, president and CEO of KBA North America. “This furthers our goal of addressing the

HAMILTON, OH—With a new owner in the investment advisory firm Plainfield Asset Management and the resulting influx of capital, SMART Papers has exited Chapter 11 reorganization with a vengeance. The company is now expanding production on all three of the papermaking machines at its manufacturing center here. SMART Papers is now producing its full line…

HAMILTON, OH—January 3, 2007—SMART Papers today announced it has a new owner, Plainfield Asset Management of Greenwich, Conn., and is expanding production on all three papermaking machines at its Hamilton, Ohio, manufacturing center. With fresh capitalization and ownership, the company said it is now producing its full line of premium cast-coated, matte-coated and uncoated text, cover and writing papers. SMART Papers employs 520 in various manufacturing, sales, customer service and management positions, primarily in Hamilton, north of Cincinnati. “SMART Papers has a rich history and well-established brands that bring unique value and benefit to the North American printing industry and their customers,” said Eric Reehl, Managing

FEDERAL WAY, WA—Aug. 23, 2006—Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE: WY) today announced that it has reached a definitive agreement to combine its Fine Paper business and related assets with Domtar Inc. (TSE/NYSE: DTC). The transaction gives Weyerhaeuser shareholders 55 percent ownership in the new company and includes a $1.35 billion cash payment to Weyerhaeuser. The cash payment, plus the stock valued at the closing price of Domtar stock on Aug. 22, 2006, results in a transaction value of $3.3 billion before considering resulting synergies.The transaction, which has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies, is expected to close in the first quarter of

ATLANTA—Koch Forest Products, a subsidiary of Koch Industries, will pay $48 a share to acquire paper manufacturing giant Georgia-Pacific (G-P). Included in the transaction are all assets of G-P, including its North American and international consumer products segments, as well as its building products, packaging, paper and bleached board segments. The deal has an equity value of $13.2 billion and a total enterprise value of $21 billion. The price paid to shareholders represents a premium of 39 percent based on the closing price of G-P common stock on November 11. The transaction is not conditioned on financing. Debt financing has been secured by Koch through Citigroup.

PALO ALTO, CA—Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP) has signed an agreement to acquire substantially all of the assets of Scitex Vision from Scitex Corp. for $230 million. The move pushes HP into the super-wide, large-format printing arena. Scitex Vision specializes in wide- and super-wide format printers for signage and industrial applications, such as billboards, banners and street advertising. Based in Netanya, Israel, the company recorded revenue of $142 million for the year ending June 30, 2005. The acquisition is said to complement HP's existing product portfolio of large-format printers and digital presses. HP also reaps Scitex Vision's proprietary technology for print heads. The two companies are also well matched

NEW YORK—Georgia-Pacific announced that it is selling a controlling, 60 percent stake in its Unisource Worldwide paper distribution subsidiary to Bain Capital, a global private investment firm. Georgia-Pacific expects the transaction to result in roughly $850 million after-tax proceeds. Georgia-Pacific will retain 40 percent ownership of Unisource and will provide $170 million in seller financing. Net proceeds of the transaction will be used by Georgia-Pacific to reduce debt. As part of the transaction, which is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2002, Georgia-Pacific will enter into a sale-leaseback agreement with third parties for certain real estate assets now owned by Unisource. These

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA—Consolidation in the paper industry continued in March when Sappi Ltd. announced it had reached an agreement to acquire Potlatch Corp.'s coated fine paper business. The deal, worth $480 million and subject to regulatory approval, includes Potlatch's Cloquet, MN, pulp and paper mill. As part of the transaction, Potlatch will also cease production at its Brainerd, MN, coated paper mill and bear the related costs. The Brainerd mill produces 140,000 short tons per year. With the deal, Potlatch exits the coated printing papers business. In 2001, Potlatch's printing papers segment reported a loss of $36.7 million on revenues of $464 million. Value Generator Sappi expects to

BY CAROLINE MILLER Two years ago, it seemed as if everyone in the paper industry was switching dance partners. Among the major acquisitions was International Paper's purchase of Champion—a deal worth nearly $7.3 billion, excluding net debt. Then came the almost soap-opera-like saga, the Weyerhaeuser hostile takeover of Willamette Industries that dragged on for 14 months and finally ended with an agreement that called for $6.1 billion in cash, or $55.50 per share, including the assumption of $1.7 billion of Willamette debt. At $19 billion in combined sales, the deal created one of the larger companies in the paper industry. And of recent