Pioneering a Restorative Approach: Inteplast is ISCC Plus Certified

Packaging Corporation of America (NYSE: PKG) today reported second quarter 2022 net income of $301 million, or $3.20 per share, and net income of $304 million, or $3.23 per share, excluding special items. Second quarter net sales were $2.2 billion in 2022 and $1.9 billion in 2021. In the Packaging segment, total corrugated products shipments and shipments per day were flat (0.18%) compared to last year’s second quarter, which was up 9.6% versus the previous year. Containerboard production was 1,256,000 tons, and containerboard inventory was up 2,000 tons versus the first quarter of 2022 and up 5,000 tons compared to the second quarter of 2021. In the Paper segment, sales volume was down 17,000 tons compared to the second quarter of 2021 and down 10,000 tons from the first quarter of 2022.

Metsä Board has on 1 December 2020 signed an agreement to sell a 30 percent stake in its Husum pulp mill in Sweden. The buyer is the Swedish forest owners’ cooperative (ekonomisk förening) Norra Skog, with whom Metsä Forest Sverige, responsible for Metsä Board’s wood procurement in Sweden, has simultaneously entered into a long-term wood supply agreement. The amendment to the environmental permit for the Husum mill has been approved, and Metsä Board has made the final investment decision on the first phase of the pulp mill renewal. The first phase of the investment includes a new recovery boiler and turbine and its total value is approximately EUR 320 million. Expected start-up for the new recovery boiler and turbine will be in H1 2022. The valuation of the Husum pulp mill (enterprise value) to be applied in the transaction at the time of closing is approximately EUR 875 million, including the completion of the ongoing recovery boiler and turbine investment. The valuation corresponds to a value of approximately EUR 1.2 billion after the completion of the second phase of the pulp mill renewal, i.e. the new fibre line. The transaction will decrease Metsä Board’s net debt by approximately EUR 260 million at the time of closing, and additionally reduce Metsä Board’s financial contribution in the second phase of the pulp mill renewal by approximately EUR 100 million. The closing of the transaction is expected to be in January 2021.

In a recent supplier award ceremony, Ahlstrom was recognized specifically for their packaging contributions to the Taco Bell® brand. “We are extremely humbled to have received this recognition from our Taco Bell® partners,” commented Travis Dahlke, Vice President of Ahlstrom’s North American Food business. Dahlke and members of his team accepted the award during the event. “This is a result of strong collaboration through our entire value chain – from Taco Bell® through our converting partners.” The S.T.A.R. awards (Supplier – Tracking – Assessment – Recognition) uses company-wide audits built to qualify supplier performance in several categories, including Packaging. Ahlstrom leveraged both its FluoroFree® and trulyNatural® technologies in the development of sustainable packaging solutions for Taco Bell.