M-real starts new internal profit improvement program

M-real Corp., Espoo, Finland, part of Metsäliitto Group, reports that it has started a new profit improvement program for this year. The program focuses on improving the paper business profitability as well as decreasing variable costs of all businesses. The earlier announced profit improvement impact of Simpele and Kemi cartonboard investments and the closure of the specialty paper production at Simpele are included in the new profit improvement program.

The planned measures are expected to improve M-real's annual operating result by EUR 70 million, with full effect from 2012 onwards. The planned measures would improve 2011 results by approximately EUR 30 million. Total 2011 results are thus expected to improve by approximately EUR 90 million, including the impact of the new program and the previous years' profit improvement programs.

"M-real has a good possibility to mostly cover the accelerated cost inflation by its own profit improvement measures. In addition to the earlier implemented measures and this new program, further profit improvement actions will be searched. The focus of the earlier profit improvement programs has been on decreasing fixed costs. M-real has, in upcoming years, significant profit improvement potential especially in variable costs, concerning primarily chemical, energy, and logistic costs", said Mikko Helander, CEO of M-real.

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