Stora Enso to acquire Schneidersöhne Group
STORA ENSO OYJ Stock Exchange Release 25 April 2005 at 15.00
Stora Enso to acquire Schneidersöhne Group
Stora Enso has signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire
100% of the shares in the German paper merchant Schneidersöhne
Group. The enterprise value of the company is estimated to be
EUR 450 million. The all-cash acquisition is expected to be
completed during the third quarter of 2005, subject to due
diligence and approval by regulatory and competition authorities
as well as other required approvals. Synergies have been
identified and will be confirmed during the due diligence
process and disclosed at the time of signing of the definitive
agreement.
The acquisition of Schneidersöhne follows the acquisitions of
two other paper merchants, Scaldia Papier in the Netherlands and
Papeteries de France (PdF). The strategic aim of the
acquisitions is to bring Stora Enso closer to the customer and
end-user in the value chain and to improve the profitability of
its merchant business. Through the Schneidersöhne acquisition,
Papyrus, Stora Ensos merchant business, will become the second-
largest paper merchant in Europe.
Schneidersöhne is by sales volume the second-largest paper
merchant in Germany and the fifth-largest in Europe. It has
operations in 11 countries, the biggest markets being Germany
and Switzerland. It has 38 branch offices, including 20 in
Germany. Schneidersöhne has 2 100 employees and had net sales of
EUR 1 130 million from a sales volume of 1 100 000 tonnes of
paper and board in 2004.
Schneidersöhne will become part of Stora Ensos merchant
business. Stora Enso will gain full management control of the
company and it will be fully consolidated from the third quarter
of 2005 onwards.
The acquisition of Schneidersöhne will have the following
financial effects on Stora Enso: earnings per share (EPS) and
cash earnings per share (CEPS), including synergies, will be
enhanced by EUR 0.02 and EUR 0.03 respectively. Stora Enso debt
will increase by the enterprise value of Schneidersöhne,
approximately EUR 450 million and its debt/equity ratio will
increase by 0.06 units.
Schneidersöhne is a well-established company with a wide
customer base, attractive product range and strong product
brands. This acquisition will enable us to better understand the
requirements of the whole value chain and to develop our
products and services accordingly. We believe this will benefit
our other merchant customers as well, says Kai Korhonen, Senior
Executive Vice President, Stora Enso Paper.
Papyruss strategy is to be a leading player in the European
merchant market. This acquisition will enhance our geographical
coverage, create a strong position in Germany and Switzerland,
and strengthen our existing position in a number of other
countries. The combination of Papyrus and Schneidersöhne will
improve our customer services and generate improved financial
returns, says Mats Nordlander, President of Papyrus.
www.papyrus.com
www.storaenso.com
For further information, please contact:
Kai Korhonen, Senior Executive Vice President, Stora Enso Paper,
tel. +44 20 7016 3162
Esko Mäkeläinen, CFO, tel. +44 20 7016 3115
Mats Nordlander, President of Papyrus, tel. +46 703 370 890
Kari Vainio, Executive Vice President, Corporate Communications,
tel. +44 7799 348 197
Keith B Russell, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, tel.
+44 20 7016 3146
Papyrus is a wholly-owned paper merchanting subsidiary of Stora
Enso with net sales of EUR 640 million in 2004. Papyrus holds a
leading position in the Nordic countries and a strong market
position in Western Europe. It supplies 710 000 tonnes of paper
annually. Papyrus currently has a presence in 13 European
countries.
STORA ENSO OYJ
p.p. Jussi Siitonen Jukka Marttila