Sappi continued its improving trend in operating performance for 2011. Sales for the year increased 11%, almost entirely as a result of higher prices in US Dollar terms. Operating profit excluding special items was US$404 million for the year, up 19% compared to 2010.
Today Sappi Fine Paper North America announced that Melching, Inc. has purchased the Muskegon Mill site, a former pulp mill, paper mill, and converting facility in Muskegon, Michigan
Operating profit for the quarter was impacted as expected by planned annual maintenance shuts at a number of our major pulp mills and seasonal factors. In addition, weaker than expected demand for coated woodfree paper in Europe resulting from continuing uncertainty in economic conditions unfavourably affected operating profit
Sappi Southern Africa has today announced it will shut down its Adamas paper mill in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The permanent closure of the mill is expected to be finalised at the end of August.
Operating profit excluding special items for the quarter (US$127 million) more than doubled compared to a year earlier (US$54 million) and on a per week basis was at the same level as our first financial quarter ended December 2010
Sappi Fine Paper North America announced today that it has been awarded an Efficiency Maine grant of approximately $300,000 for a capital project to improve the energy efficiency of 10 pumping systems on Paper Machine Number 3 (PM3) at its Somerset Mill in Skowhegan, Maine
“The trend of improving performance continued in the quarter. Demand for our products remained good and prices increased gradually. Pulp prices remained high, benefiting our Southern African and North American businesses, which performed strongly.