Canadian pulp-and-paper producer the Paper Excellence Group has agreed to purchase
Resolute Forest Products (RFP) for $1.6 billion U.S.
Privately held Paper Excellence said it will pay $20.50 U.S. for each share of Resolute Forest,
representing a 64% premium over where the stock finished trading the day before the deal was
announced.
The acquisition comes as paper supplies are forecast to remain tight after mills in Canada and
the U.S. switched to making cardboard to meet strong demand for boxes and packing materials
during the pandemic-fueled e-commerce boom.
Montreal-based Resolute Excellence is a major producer of newsprint and is the largest North
American producer of paper used in flyers and magazines.
This is the second major acquisition made by Paper Excellence in the past 14 months. In May
2021, the company acquired Domtar for $2.8 billion U.S. That deal was finalized last November.
Resolute Excellence’s stock rose more than 60% to $20.36 U.S. on news that it is being
acquired by Paper Excellence. Year to date, the stock is now up 39%.