Archives

The PM40 closed Friday, 17 April 2026, at 5400.

Get the latest PM40 updates by listening to the weekly Nips show and the PM40 Daily Show on Pulp & Paper Radio International.

The PM40 closed 17 April 2026 up 6.4% from the 18 April 2025 level.

In this issue of Disconnected Comparisons, we evaluate Graphic Packaging and International Paper.

The Trump Administration's executive orders cut across dozens of industries. This searchable tool breaks down the orders and their impact.

Ladies and gentlemen, the first class of inductees to the Paper Industry International Hall of Fame in Appleton, Wisconsin was inducted more than two decades ago in 1995, and today, more than 150 papermaking innovators and legends have been enshrined. This month, we profile the late Nathan H. Bergstrom, Chairman of the Board at Bergstrom Paper Company of Neenah, Wisconsin, who was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2002.

Do you think data centers will cause a disruption in the US electrical grid?

The system is scheduled to start up in the Q2 2026.

The second-generation bioethanol plant, based on Valmet's fiberline, is planned to start-up in March 2028.

Wuzhou Specialty Paper has successfully started up PM 19 at its mill in China, with the paper machine becoming the first worldwide to operate with a DuoCentri NipcoFlex press that includes a center belt.

Ahlstrom 226™ filter paper was selected as the substrate material for the dried urine strip design.

The list of winners spans 23 industries and recognizes 700 leading companies that have demonstrated exceptional trustworthiness in the eyes of consumers, employees, and investors. Boise Cascade ranked in the Top 12 within its industry.

Two LP® products also recognized among the year's most sustainable building materials.

The packaging industry is facing increasing expectations related to recyclability, material efficiency and reduced reliance on fossil‑based materials, alongside brand owner climate commitments and evolving regulation.

Mondi's premium semi-chemical fluting solutions are designed to perform reliably in challenging conditions, from long-distance transport to cold storage and high-humidity environments.

Following the weekend's storm in Sweden, Södra is bringing forward the launch of its safety app Tryggve. The app forms part of Södra's work to increase safety in the forest and enhance security for people working alone.

Sun Chemical has announced the launch of the AquaHeat platform, a new generation of food-safe, bio-based printing inks. The new inks enable full-color printing for high-temperature food applications, unlocking commercial baking and food-service packaging opportunities previously not possible, while supporting sustainability, productivity, and regulatory confidence.

Ranked No. 6 in Design for advancing the future of packaging through innovation, design, and scalable solutions.

The packaging and tissue products company said Friday that U.S. weather disruptions and volatile swings in transportation and fuel surcharges pushed operating costs higher, while recent geopolitical tensions dampened consumer confidence and spending, leading to softer packaging volumes.

The Annual General Meeting adopted the financial statements for 2025 and resolved on a dividend of €1.50 per share for the financial period 2025.

Georgia-Pacific will implement a price increase of 2.5% to 3.5%, effective May 18, 2026, on DensDeck®, DensDeck® Prime products and DensDeck® StormX™ Prime Roof Boards.

Quad/Graphics, Inc., announced it is enacting an immediate, temporary surcharge on its printing inks, UV coating and varnishes to help offset increasing costs impacting its ink manufacturing subsidiary Chemical Research/Technology (CR/T).

Sonoco S.a.r.l., a wholly owned unit of Sonoco Products Company, a global leader in high-value sustainable packaging, announced it will raise prices by 80 Euro per ton for uncoated recycled paperboard (URB) grades and 8% on all tube and core products sold by the Company in the EMEA region.

The Iran war has led to a surge in oil prices and driven up Suzano's costs of shipping, trucking, rail and chemicals.

The Trump administration moves toward lowering U.S. trade duties on most Canadian softwood lumber after a preliminary Commerce Department decision that would reduce the combined rate to 25% from about 35%.

Joint venture with Indocement strengthens Mondi's paper bags footprint in a structurally growing Southeast Asian market.

Rengo Co. has acquired an additional 29% of the issued shares of Murase Danboru Ltd., increasing its total ownership interest to 49%. The transaction builds on Rengo's initial investment in the corrugated packaging manufacturer in 2024, which had already led to collaboration in containerboard supply and contract manufacturing.

UPM Adhesive Materials, a global supplier of self-adhesive paper and film products, and Mark Andy, a leading manufacturer of narrow- and mid-web printing and finishing equipment, announce the renewal of their strategic partnership in the Americas for the seventh consecutive year.

Abdulkarim, an employee of a third-party distributor of the Kimberly-Clark paper goods warehouse in Ontario, allegedly filmed himself lighting multiple pallets of toilet paper on fire inside the 1.2 million square foot building. It was destroyed last Tuesday as a result.

The fire destroyed some $500 million in paper products and destroyed the warehouse, valued at $150 million.

Investigation underway after fatal shooting at Mondi Richards Bay mill.

Saica Flex Deeside has announced a GBP 2.2 million (Euro 2.5 million) investment in a fully automatic coating machine, a move that quadruples the site's previous coating capacity. The state-of-the-art equipment coats wider materials at higher speeds with enhanced precision, delivering improved efficiency and product quality for the UK label industry.

IP expanding capabilities to serve the growing West Coast region.

The transaction remains on track to close in the second half of 2026, subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals and satisfaction of other remaining customary closing conditions.

Sealed Air is now a privately held company and its shares have ceased trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

The solution enables real-time reporting, automated document intelligence, and scalable regulatory compliance across global operations.

A Longview paper mill that built its reputation on "superior quality newsprint" will stop making the product at the end of the month, according to industry reports.

An online auction will be held on Thursday, May 7, 2026 for High End Stock Prep, Pulping, and Finishing Equipment from the former Georgia-Pacific Specialty Pulp Mill in Perry, Florida.

Packaging Corporation of America (PCA) is dismissing rumors that its Wallula containerboard mill will close in the coming weeks, according to company officials.

This session will explore how pulp and paper operations are evolving as mills navigate workforce transition, operational complexity, and the need for faster, more coordinated decision-making.

In the pulp and paper industry, the financial impact of a fire is rarely determined by the size of the initial flame. It is determined by how far that fire progresses before it is extinguished. That distinction carries serious implications for how senior leaders and CFOs should evaluate their mills' protection strategies.

The Ontario warehouse fire and what it reveals about the response gap in high-fuel-load facilities.

Clearwater Paper Corporation announced the restructuring of its Cypress Bend, Arkansas facility, resulting in the reduction of approximately 20% of salaried and hourly roles at the facility. The company plans to operate the facility at about half of its production capability. The company expects these actions to deliver $8 to $12 million of annualized cost savings, while not impacting shipment volumes.

Premier David Eby told the annual gathering of the B.C. Council of Forest Industries (COFI) on Friday, April 10, said that the government plans to ease industrial carbon prices for pulp mills as the province's forestry sector continues to struggle to remain competitive.

These awards recognize Pregis channel partners for adopting product solutions that deliver measurable environmental and social outcomes during 2025.

Södra has now completed the initial inventory after storm Dave and a first compilation shows that approximately 1 million m³fub of forest has been damaged on member land in Götaland. Västra Götaland County and parts of Jönköping County are the hardest hit areas.

Initiative integrates fragments of native forests in the Atlantic Forest, Cerrado and Amazon biomes, stimulating wildlife movement, the expansion of vegetation cover and the restoration of ecosystems.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency reports it has fined West Fraser Forest Products $24,750 for exceeding the total amount of hazardous air pollutants allowed by the air permit for the company's Solway facility from January 2024 to January 2025.

More than 100 firefighters were on scene battling the flames that cast an orange glow in the area.

A mill operator at the Domtar site in Port Alberni has been transported to hospital in serious condition following an on-site injury Thursday morning, April 9.

No injuries were reported in the explosion, which is still under investigation. A cause has not yet been determined.

An active fire investigation is still underway at the time of this release to determine the cause of the fire. Early estimates of total loss are near $1 million.

An early evening fire at Packaging Corporation of America in the Horn Rapids area led to the evacuation of the building on April 8.

One firefighter was taken to a hospital for a minor head injury and some property was damaged during a blaze at a Solvay industrial facility Tuesday night, April 7.

Henrik Ehrnrooth was re-elected as the Chair, and Martin á Porta was elected as the Deputy Chair of the Board of Directors of UPM-Kymmene Corporation at the Board of Directors' constitutive meeting that took place today following the Annual General Meeting.

Incident command confirmed two separate fires at the location.

Adoption of the VORA AI platform from Industry Intelligence reflects Pixelle's forward‑thinking approach to strategy and innovation.

Chamel Abdulkarim, 29, of Highland has been arrested on two felony arson charges for torching a warehouse operated by consumer goods company Kimberly-Clark in Ontario, according to sources with knowledge of the investigation.

A six-alarm fire broke out Tuesday, April 7 at a Kimberly-Clark warehouse in Ontario, Calif., requiring 175 firefighters to contain it.