January 7, 2002

Nippon Unipac Holding Group Increases Production Capacities for De-inked Pulp at Four Mills in Japan
- Yufutsu, Yatsushiro, Iwanuma, and Shiraoi Mills will soon achieve a de-inked pulp ratio of up to 80 percent in newsprint -

Nippon Paper Industries, Co., Ltd.
Daishowa Paper Manufacturing, Co., Ltd.
Nippon Paper Sales, Co., Ltd.

Tokyo, January 7, 2002 - Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd., Daishowa Paper Manufacturing Co., Ltd., and Nippon Paper Sales Co., Ltd., three major companies of the Nippon Unipac Holding Group, announced today that they have stepped up their efforts to provide newsprint with a high ratio of de-inked pulp (DIP) by increasing their production capacities for making DIP from waste paper, which is reused in newsprint production. Made possible by a total investment of 5.9 billion yen, additional DIP production facilities will be built or refurbished at four sites: Yufutsu and Yatsushiro Mills, which are operated by Nippon Paper Industries; and Iwanuma and Shiraoi Mills, which are run by Daishowa Paper Manufacturing. When construction is complete, by the middle of 2002, an additional 400 tons of DIP production daily capacity will be available at these four mills.
 
The additional DIP production capacity will allow Nippon Paper Industries to realize an even higher de-inked pulp ratio in its production of newsprint, achieving 75% on average, and reaching as high as 80%. Nippon Paper Industries' newsprint that is produced in Japan has already attained DIP ratio of nearly 70%, and now the company's innovative DIP technology has made a ratio of nearly 80% possible. These high levels of recycling have been realized through the application of a proprietary technology that enables the recycling of such inferior grades of waste paper as magazines which contain adhesives in their spines. Similarly, Daishowa Paper Manufacturing's Shiraoi Mill will be able to churn out newsprint with a DIP ratio of more than 70%, and the Iwanuma Mill will make newsprint with more than 65% DIP content. In the meantime, other paper mills at Nippon Paper Industries and Daishowa Paper Manufacturing - Kushiro, Ishinomaki, and Fushiki Mills of Nippon Paper Industries and Honsha Mill Fuji Division of Daishowa Paper Manufacturing - have already been operating at as high a recycling rate as that of the four updated mills.
 
The move for both Nippon Paper Industries and Daishowa Paper Manufacturing to further expand their production of de-inked pulp for newsprint responds to a growing demand for environmentally kinder paper products in Japan. Sales of newsprint with a high de-inked pulp ratio from the two paper manufacturers are handled by Nippon Paper Sales Co., Ltd.
 
[Breakdown of increased production capacities and investment at four mills]
Daily pulp production capacities as of December 2001 Additional daily production capacities
(Total capacities)
Capital investment
[billion yen]
Completion of new construction
Yufutsu Mill
230 tons
110 tons
(340 tons)
1.5
June 2002
Yatsushiro Mill
500 tons
100 tons
(600 tons)
1.2
June 2002
Iwanuma Mill
800 tons
140 tons*
(940 tons)
2.5
April 2002
Shiraoi Mill
120 tons
50 tons
(170 tons)
0.7
Dec. 2001
 
*Part of the new facilities for DIP production at Iwanuma Mill was completed in October 2001, so its projected daily capacity of 140 tons includes 80 tons of production capacity that has already been updated.