HARTSVILLE, S.C., July 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sonoco (NYSE: SON)
and Ahlstrom Corporation, Finland, have reached an agreement under which
Sonoco will acquire Ahlstrom's 35.5 percent interest in Sonoco-Alcore,
S.a.r.l., a joint venture formed in 2004 when the two companies combined
their European tube, core and coreboard operations, it was announced today
by Harris E. DeLoach, Jr., chairman, president and chief executive officer.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991006/SNCLOGO)
The purchase, which will increase Sonoco's ownership in the operations
from 64.5 to 100 percent, is expected to be completed in this year's third
quarter, pending certain regulatory approvals. No additional approval is
required by the Commission of the European Communities.
"We are pleased to have this opportunity to purchase the remaining
interest in the Sonoco-Alcore properties and look forward to further
enhancing their value within the Sonoco European portfolio of tube, core
and paperboard operations. We expect that the purchase will be slightly
accretive to Sonoco's earnings in the fourth quarter of this year," said
DeLoach.
Sonoco, as the majority interest holder, has accounted for the joint
venture as an acquisition since its inception and, therefore, has been
consolidating the results of the joint venture and reporting Ahlstrom's
share as minority interest in its financial statements.
Today, the joint venture consists of 28 tube and core plants and six
paper mills. Total sales for the joint venture in 2005 were approximately
$330 million. Sonoco-Alcore's European operations also include a 25 percent
interest in Demolli Industries S.p.A., the largest manufacturer of
paperboard and tubes and cores in Italy.
Founded in 1899, Sonoco is a $3.5 billion global manufacturer of
industrial and consumer packaging products and provider of packaging
services, with more than 300 operations in 35 countries, serving customers
in 85 nations. Additional information about Sonoco is available at
http://www.sonoco.com.
SOURCE Sonoco
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Related links:
http://www.sonoco.com/
Photo Notes:
NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991006/SNCLOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
CONTACT:
Allan V. Cecil, Vice President, Sonoco,
+1-843-383-7524, or allan.cecil@sonoco.com
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