Cascades Agrees to Sale of Paper Mill in France

Cascades Inc. has reached an agreement with OpenGate Capital, a private equity firm, for the sale of the company’s Norampac Avot-Vallée mill. The transaction is expected to be complete by March 1, 2011.

The mill, which manufactures 100 percent recycled content linerboard, has an annual capacity of 145,000 tons per year.

“Since Norampac's priority is to consolidate its leader position in North America, Cascades came to the conclusion that it would be more strategic for the group to sell the Avot-Vallée mill to a company that has the ability to ensure its development and continuity”, says Marc-André Dépin, president and CEO of Norampac, a division of Cascades Canada Inc., in a release.

Alain Lemaire, Cascades' president and CEO, adds, “This transaction is part of our strategy to simplify our portfolio of assets, reduce our debt and concentrate on developing and improving the competitiveness of our key operations in packaging, tissue papers and recovery. Therefore, I wish to thank all the employees for their involvement and efforts over the last 20 years.”