METSÄ TISSUE ACQUIRES MAJORITY SHAREHOLD

Metsä Tissue Corp. Stock Exchange Release 4.4.2003 at 10.00 am

METSÄ TISSUE ACQUIRES MAJORITY SHAREHOLDING IN POLISH TISSUE
PRODUCTS CONVERTER KRAPEX

On 2 April 2003, Metsä Tissue Corporation acquired 38 per cent of
the shares of the Polish tissue products converter Krapex Sp.zoo,
having previously received the necessary approval from the Polish
competition authority and Poland’s Ministry of the Interior. The
price of the shares was EUR 0.8 million and was based on the (100%)
debt-free value of the whole of Krapex, which is around EUR 3
million. Metsä Tissue already owned 47 per cent of the company, and
the share acquisition now brings its interest in Krapex to 85 per
cent. Krapex will be consolidated into Metsä Tissue’s accounts with
effect from April 2003.

Krapex is situated in Krapkowice in southern Poland, immediately
next to Metsä Tissue’s Krapkowice production plant. Krapex produces
bathroom tissue, paper towels and industrial wipes for the awayfrom-
home market. In 2002, Krapex had a turnover of around EUR 10 million
and the company made a profit. The acquisition will have a slight
positive impact on Metsä Tissue’s earnings per share for 2003.

The acquisition of Krapex makes Metsä Tissue Poland’s biggest
producer of tissue products for the away-from-home market and raises
Metsä Tissue’s share of the total Polish market for converted tissue
products to around 20 per cent. Metsä Tissue’s brand names on the
Polish away-from-home market are Katrin and Saga.

METSÄ TISSUE CORPORATION

Lars Warvne
President and CEO

For more information:
Lars Warvne, President and CEO, gsm +46 70 572 8921
Timo Suuriniemi, Chief Financial Officer, 
tel. +358 10 469 4580, gsm +358 50 560 8271

Distribution:
HEX/Helsinki Exchanges
Key media