Abitibi-Consolidated Support Softwood Lumber Offer
December 06 2003 - 7:25PM
PR Newswire (US)
Abitibi-Consolidated Support Softwood Lumber Offer A (TSX) ABY
(NYSE) MONTREAL (QUEBEC), Dec. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Abitibi-Consolidated Inc.'s CEO John Weaver made the following
comments in light of today's softwood lumber proposal between
Canada and the United States: "Today's development is an important
milestone. This is the right action at the right time. Companies
and communities on both sides of the border have been impacted by
this long-standing dispute. Both sides have made significant
compromise in an effort to bring resolution to this issue. For the
first time, Canada and the United States have come up with a
framework for ultimately achieving free trade. It is important to
move forward. This proposal provides a strong measure of stability
and brings economic certainty to our lumber business." "As a
compromise, significant give and take was required by all parties.
I firmly believe this is a fair deal for Canada and I am hopeful
that other forest products companies and provincial governments
will likewise endorse this offer." Abitibi-Consolidated is the
world's leading producer of newsprint and value-added paper as well
as a major producer of wood products, generating sales of $5.1
billion in 2002. With 16, 000 employees, the Company does business
in more than 70 countries. Responsible for the forest management of
18 million hectares, Abitibi-Consolidated is committed to the
sustainability of the natural resources in its care. The Company is
also the world's largest recycler of newspapers and magazines,
serving 17 metropolitan areas with more than 10,000 recycling
locations. Abitibi-Consolidated operates 27 paper mills, 21
sawmills, 3 remanufacturing facilities and 1 engineered wood
facility in Canada, the US, the UK, South Korea, China and
Thailand. DATASOURCE: ABITIBI-CONSOLIDATED INC. CONTACT: Investors
: Lorne Gorber, Manager, Investor Relations, (514) 394-2360; Media:
Marc Osborne, Manager, Corporate Comm & Media Relations, (514)
394-2340
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