Clearwater Paper’s tissue operations officially sold

Clearwater Paper has completed the sale of its tissue manufacturing facilities to Sofidel America Corp. for $1.06 billion.

The close of the deal was announced Friday in news releases from Sofidel and Clearwater Paper.

Sofidel America is a subsidiary of Sofidel S.p.A., which is a privately held company headquartered in Lucca, Italy.

It is owned and operated by the second generation of the Lazzareschi and Stephani families who founded the company in 1966, said Fabio Vitali, a spokesperson for Sofidel, in an email.

The transaction included Clearwater Paper’s tissue operations in Lewiston; Las Vegas; Shelby, N.C.; and Elwood, Ill., near Chicago.

The Lewiston, Las Vegas and Shelby sites all have machines that manufacture tissue then cut and package it into private-label products such as toilet paper, paper towels, paper napkins and facial tissue for retailers that sell it under their own brands. The facilities at Elwood cut and package tissue from large parent rolls.

“Sofidel has officially finalized the acquisition and now owns the four Clearwater Paper plants,” Vitali said. “Although it is business as usual, Sofidel is now essentially running the former Clearwater Paper tissue operations.”

The transaction brings significant changes to Sofidel and Clearwater Paper, which has its largest manufacturing complex in Lewiston.

Clearwater Paper now has about 800 employees in Lewiston who make pulp for paperboard and tissue, and paperboard for products such as paper dishware and packaging for cosmetics.

“This is the next big step in transforming Clearwater (Paper) into a premier independent packaging supplier in North America,” said Arsen Kitch, president and CEO of Clearwater Paper, in a news release Friday.

“We’ll use the proceeds from the sale to pay down debt and strengthen our balance sheet,” Kitch said. “We will be well positioned to scale and diversify our paperboard business to create long-term value for our shareholders.”

About 500 former Lewiston Clearwater Paper employees now work for Sofidel America.

“(They) will continue to manufacture paper products for the Sofidel Group,” Vitali said. “They do not need to reapply for their jobs. Unionized employees in Lewiston will retain their union status.”

The highest ranking executive for Sofidel in Lewiston is Simone Giacomelli, Sofidel’s integration manager. Other executives, including Sofidel’s CEO, Luigi Lazzareschi, will periodically visit the site, Vitali said.

The 500 Lewiston employees of Sofidel are among 1,700 former Clearwater Paper staff members joining Sofidel, which had 1,800 employees in the United States before the deal closed.

Like the operations of Clearwater Paper it has acquired, Sofidel makes store-brand toilet paper, paper towels, paper napkins and facial tissue, Vitali said.

Before the Clearwater Paper transaction, Sofidel had U.S. plants in Circleville, Ohio; Inola, Okla.; Haines City, Fla.; Duluth, Minn.; Green Bay, Wis.; Las Vegas; and Hattiesburg, Miss.

The acquisition of Clearwater Paper is the largest transaction in Sofidel’s history and expands its production capacity by 25%, or 340,000 metric tons per year, according to a Sofidel news release.

Two Through Air Drying machines, one in Las Vegas and another in Shelby, are among the assets Sofidel is getting from Clearwater Paper, according to the Sofidel news release. The machines are used to create segments in tissues, particularly in paper towels.

“This transaction makes Sofidel the fourth largest tissue paper manufacturer in North America and strengthens its leadership in the private label sector, a market that is growing further,” Lazzareschi said in the news release.

“(It’s) a step that brings the goal of having equivalent revenues on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean much closer,” Lazzareschi said.

Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.