Ahlstrom completes acquisition of Stevens Point operation

SCA intends to invest SEK 1,45bn in the production of chemically pre-treated thermo-mechanical pulp (CTMP) at the Ortviken paper mill in Sundsvall. In parallel, SCA is initiating consultations with trade unions and employee representatives to discontinue the production of publication paper at the mill. SCA intends to invest to achieve an annual production volume of 300,000 tonnes of CTMP pulp at Ortviken, using the existing infrastructure. Currently, SCA produces coated and uncoated publication paper on three paper machines at Ortviken paper mill with annual sales of approximately SEK 4bn. Demand for publication paper in Western Europe has declined by approximately 5% per year since 2008.

As President and COO, Torres will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of Kimberly-Clark's business segments. He will also have responsibility for the Global Supply Chain, R&D, Global Growth and Digital Technology Solutions organizations. Torres will continue to report to Mike Hsu, Kimberly-Clark's Chairman and CEO. Kurt Laufer, current President of US Consumer Sales, will serve as Interim President, North America while the Company conducts a search to identify a permanent successor. Torres has served as President of Kimberly-Clark's North America business since October 2024, responsible for the Company's personal care, family care and professional businesses in North America. Prior to that, he served as Group President, K-C North America since 2021, where he was responsible for the consumer business in North America, and as President of K-C Professional from 2020 to 2021, where he led business-to-business operations globally. Torres has more than 25 years of experience in the consumer product goods industry, and prior to Kimberly-Clark served in a number of key senior leadership roles at Newell Brands, Bain & Company and Mondelez International (formerly Kraft Foods).

Following the announcement by the Swedish SCA Group about discussions regarding a possible closure of its paper machines in Ortviken (Sweden) and consequently possible effects on various corporate divisions of the group, the Austrian paper manufacturer Laakirchen Papier AG comments on this issue as follows: The Heinzel Group, whose subsidiary is the Austrian paper mill Laakirchen Papier AG, has a sales cooperation with the SCA Group in place since several years. "The possible closure of the paper machines and potential effects on the sales cooperation with SCA in Western European countries such as Germany, France, Belgium or the Netherlands have no influence on the production and sales of SC paper from Laakirchen Papier. We continue to be committed to SC paper production in the future and we assure our customers that they will be delivered with our paper as usual”, says Franz Baldauf, CFO of Laakirchen Papier AG.