Pixelle Specialty Solutions, one of the largest specialty paper producers in North America, has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire specialty paper mills in Jay (“Androscoggin”), Maine, and Stevens Point, Wisconsin, from Verso Corp. The transaction is anticipated to close in the first quarter of 2020.
The Androscoggin mill has the capacity to produce approximately 425,000 tons of paper per year and currently produces flexible packaging papers, release liner base, specialty labels, kraft papers and linerboard. The Stevens Point mill has the capacity to produce approximately 210,000 tons of paper per year and currently produces coated flexible packaging papers, release liner base, thermal papers, and other specialty labels.
Upon closing, Pixelle will be the largest specialty paper business in the U.S. in terms of annual production, with a broad range of products including high-speed inkjet, machine glazed (MG) & machine finished (MF) papers, release liner, thermal base paper, trade book paper, carbonless, greaseproof, and coated one side (C1S) specialties. Pixelle will operate four mills (Androscoggin; Chillicothe, Ohio; Spring Grove, Pennsylvania; and Stevens Point), three of which have on-site pulp mills, with a total of 12 paper machines and the capacity to produce more than one million tons of paper annually in aggregate. Additional operations will include a converting facility in Fremont, Ohio and wood fiber sourcing operations in strategic wood baskets in Maine, Maryland, Ohio and West Virginia.
Pixelle was formed in 2018 by Lindsay Goldberg, a private investment firm. Steven Klinger, a Lindsay Goldberg Affiliate Partner, and his management team have more than 150 years combined experience in the paper and packaging industries and have worked together previously at Georgia-Pacific and Smurfit-Stone. Lindsay Goldberg has significant prior experience investing and building value in the paper and packaging sectors. Notable investments include Golden West Packaging Group and Crown Paper Group, where Klinger also serves as Executive Chairman.
