Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd. (President: Takahiko Miyoshi) has decided to equip the kraft pulp production facilities of Shiraoi Mill, located in Shiraoi-gun, Hokkaido, with an elemental chlorine-free (ECF) bleaching process. The Company will make a capital investment of approximately 1.5 billion yen for the project. Construction work commenced in December 2004 and is scheduled to be complete in November 2005.

The new ECF bleaching process uses a bleaching method based on chlorine dioxide. With zero consumption of chlorine and sodium hypochlorite, it leads to substantially reduced emissions of chloroform and other chlorinated organic compounds and has a lower impact on the environment. In addition, to improve operating and bleaching efficiency of the entire bleaching system, the Company will be renovating the internal chlorine dioxide production facilities, to change the production method and upgrade productivity.

Nippon Paper Industries has been active in applying the ECF technology to the kraft pulp bleaching process, based on its Environmental Charter, which prescribes sustainable corporate activities that are compatible with nature. Within fiscal 2005, ECF bleaching will have been introduced to nearly 85 percent of the processes throughout the Nippon Paper Group. As a core member of the Group, the Company will continue to further its operational activities that are compatible with the environment to make a greater contribution to sustainable development of society than it has ever made before.