Sappi had said in late 2023 that, to reduce production capacity for graphic paper in Europe, it had initiated a consultation process to close its Sappi Lanaken mill.

The consultation process was successfully concluded and production ceased at the end of December 2023.

In an announcement yesterday (15 July), the company stated: “Following the successful closure of the mill, a process was initiated to sell the land and assets. Sappi is pleased to announce that it has concluded an agreement with UTB Waalwijk B.V. (UTB), a privately owned Dutch company specialising in industrial property conversions.

“In terms of the agreement UTB will acquire all the shares in Sappi Lanaken N.V. including all its assets for a value of €50m [£42m], of which €40m will be paid in cash. The transaction is unconditional and expected to close during October 2024.”

Sappi’s Lanaken mill was an integrated pulp and paper mill. It employed 581 workers and had a production capacity of 165,000tpa of pulp that was used to produce 530,000tpa of high-quality coated woodfree HSWO paper – mainly sold into the European print market. The mill was one of the largest employers in the area.

In an earlier statement on the closure, Sappi Europe had said: “For Sappi, our strategic focus includes reducing exposure to the graphic paper segment while expanding our presence in packaging, speciality papers, pulp and biomaterials.

“Sappi Europe is focused on building a sustainably resilient company. This requires evaluating the future of all facets of the business based on market dynamics and the market segments Sappi believe will be strongest in the future.”

Sappi has also recently closed its Stockstadt Mill in Germany, which had produced 220,000tpa of coated and uncoated woodfree paper.