NewPage Elects Martin President and CEO

NewPage Corp., Miamisburg, Ohio, USA, this week elected George F. Martin president and CEO and a member of its board of directors, effective immediately. Martin joined Westvaco as a chemist in the corporate research department in Charleston, S.C., in 1983. From 1983 to 2005, he held various operating, technical, and staff roles at Westvaco and MeadWestvaco. Key roles included technical director of the Tyrone, Pa., coated paper mill, production manager at the Luke, Maryland, paper mill, and mill manager at the Escanaba, Mich., mill. In 2005, he was promoted to senior VP of operations for NewPage where he was responsible for the manufacturing operations of 10 mills, strategic sourcing and logistics, environmental, health and safety, order management, and engineering and maintenance.

"George has 27 years of proven leadership and operations experience in the paper industry, as well as demonstrated success in improving the overall cost structure and productivity for NewPage. He possesses the knowledge and expertise critical to profitably lead the company forward during very challenging times for the paper industry," said Robert L. Nardelli,chairman of the board of NewPage and its affiliates. "Today's news concludes a rigorous process in which the board looked at numerous and highly qualified internal and external candidates. The decision to elect George into this position was unanimous, and speaks to the board's confidence in his ability to lead the company.

"Following the recent leadership changes, George demonstrated his commitment and dedication to NewPage as he stepped up to take a lead role in running the business," Nardelli added. "His tenure at the organization will lend stability and continuity for the organization to achieve long term success."

NewPage owns paper mills in Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Nova Scotia, Canada, with a total annual production capacity of approximately 4.4 million tons of paper, including 3.2 million tons of coated paper, 1.0 million tons of uncoated paper, and 200,000 tons of specialty paper.

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