EU Commission has today cleared UPM-Kymmene's acquisition of G. Haindl'sche Papierfabriken KGaA. The parallel agreement for the further sale of two Haindl paper mills to Norske Skog has also been given the green light. Both transactions are expected to be closed in the month of November.
The four Haindl mills acquired by UPM-Kymmene are located in Augsburg, Schongau and Schwedt in Germany and Steyrermühl in Austria. Norske Skog will acquire two mills, Walsum and Parenco.
"The approval went as planned and the market impact of the transaction has now been thoroughly examined. UPM-Kymmene and Haindl are regarded as highly complementary in terms of geographic fit and product portfolios. The high quality of the Haindl mills and their skilled workforces will strengthen UPM-Kymmene's position as the leading supplier of publication papers", says Juha Niemelä, President and CEO of UPM-Kymmene.
After the transaction the combined annual turnover of UPM-Kymmene and Haindl's four paper mills will exceed EUR 11 billion, personnel will number over 36,000 and UPM-Kymmene's paper production capacity will be 11.6 million tonnes.
For more information please contact:
Mr Juha Niemelä, President and CEO, UPM-Kymmene, tel. +358 204 15 0001
Mr Olavi Kauppila, Vice President, Investor Relations, UPM-Kymmene, tel +358 204 15 0658
UPM-Kymmene Corporation
Corporate Communications
21, November, 2001
