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MONTREAL, Nov. 22, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - Resolute Forest Products (NYSE:
RFP) (TSX: RFP) today announced plans to build an industrial wood
pellet plant that will convert a currently underutilized residual
material into a reliable source of renewable energy. Construction of
the plant is expected to begin shortly and is scheduled for completion
in 2014. The Company has signed a ten-year agreement to supply Ontario
Power Generation with 45,000 metric tons of pellets annually.
The plant will be built adjacent to the Company's sawmill in Thunder
Bay, Ontario, creating approximately 24 new jobs when fully operational
and improving the long-term viability of the sawmill and the
approximately 350 jobs that it supports.
"Wood pellets are a clean, renewable energy source, and together with
other biofuel opportunities, a natural diversification target for
Resolute," said Richard Garneau, President and Chief Executive Officer.
"This project provides the opportunity to enhance the use of our
existing asset base to produce biofuel for a strategic, committed
consumer and allows the Company to gain valuable manufacturing
experience in commercial biomass production."
Resolute will invest approximately C$10 million in the construction of
the plant, adding to the investments of approximately C$120 million the
Company has announced for its Ontario operations since 2011.
About Resolute Forest Products
Resolute Forest Products is a global leader in the forest products
industry with a diverse range of products, including newsprint,
commercial printing papers, market pulp and wood products. The Company
owns or operates 22 pulp and paper mills and 22 wood products
facilities in the United States, Canada and South Korea. Marketing its
products in close to 80 countries, Resolute has third-party certified
100% of its managed woodlands to sustainable forest management
standards. The shares of Resolute Forest Products trade under the stock
symbol RFP on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock
Exchange.
Resolute and other member companies of the Forest Products Association
of Canada, as well as a number of environmental organizations, are
partners in the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement. The group works to
identify solutions to conservation issues that meet the goal of
balancing equally the three pillars of sustainability linked to human
activities: environmental, social and economic. Resolute is also a
member of the World Wildlife Fund's Climate Savers program, in which
businesses establish ambitious targets to voluntarily reduce greenhouse
gas emissions and work aggressively toward achieving them.
SOURCE: RESOLUTE FOREST PRODUCTS INC.