Sappi had struck a deal to sell three European mills, including Stockstadt, Maastricht in the Netherlands, and the Kirkniemi Mill in Finland to Aurelius Group but the transaction failed to complete.

At the time it had been described as a “complex carve-out” and was subject to various conditions including approvals from competition and regulatory authorities.

In April, Sappi said the sale had “not materialised within the agreed timeframe of the contractual agreement and therefore the agreement has lapsed”.

The enterprise value of the Aurelius deal had been approximately €272m (£243m at the time). Aurelius had expected the mills to deliver sales of more than €1bn.

In a statement published last week, Sappi said that, having explored all options for the mill, including discussions with other potential buyers, it became evident that “selling the mill as a going concern was not possible”.

Consultations have therefore commenced on the mill’s future with mill management, the Economic Works Council, and the Works Council, which will include the potential closure of the mill and the sale of the site.

The implication, Sappi added, is that the pulp mill and paper machine will close, but customers would continue to be served from other Sappi mills.

Stockstadt is an integrated pulp and paper mill producing 145,000tpa of pulp and 220,000tpa of coated and uncoated woodfree paper, mainly sold into the European print market.