(This story has been updated to clarify that Paper Excellence shut down its Howe Sound paper making operations, but not the pulp operations.)
Richmond-headquartered Paper Excellence is planning to buy out another Richmond-based pulp and paper company – Catalyst Paper Corp.
The sale, announced Tuesday October 9, will require the approval of the BC Supreme Court and at least two-thirds of Catalyst’s shareholders.
Neither company has stated how much the sale is worth.
Catalyst owns three mills in B.C. – in Crofton, Port Alberni and Powell River – and has faced a succession of financial challenges.
In 2012, it was forced to seek creditor protection and was taken private. More recently, the company has been hammered by American duties on newsprint.
Catalyst CEO Ned Dwyer said the sale is a good deal for all involved.
"When complete this transaction will benefit all of our stakeholders, including our customers, employees, suppliers, the communities where we operate, and BC's pulp and paper and forest products industries," Dwyer said in a press release.
As for Paper Excellence, it is a relatively new player in B.C. pulp and paper sector. Paper Excellence is owned by a Dutch subsidiary of an Indonesian conglomerate Sinar Mas Group.
The company has been buying up Canadian mills in recent years, including four in B.C. – Howe Sound Pulp and Paper, Skookumchuck, Mackenzie and Chetwynd. In 2015, Paper Excellence shut down the paper making mill at Howe Sound Pulp and Paper, although it maintained its pulp operations.
