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November 12, 2009. UPM-Kymmene terminates pulp contract with APRIL, Kampar Peninsula under threat
Friends of the Earth Finland welcomes UPM's announcement. It puts an end to FOE Finland's campaign to stop the alliance between UPM and APRIL.
The announcement follows Greenpeace demonstration in Sumatra against logging in Kampar Peninsula forests by APRIL. Kampar Peninsula is one of the last large peatswamp forest areas left globally. Logging will cause massive carbon emissions, in the order of annual emissions of Finland.
>>> UPM press release
>>> Friends of the Earth Finland and Greenpeace Nordic press release on UPM's decision
>>> Greenpeace International press release on UPM's decision
>>> Greenpeace press release on Kampar Peninsula demonstration
>>> Factsheet on Kampar Peninsula by FOE Finland
December 20, 2006. A letter by 36 citizens' organisations to UPM-Kymmene
regarding supplying pulp from APRIL
>>>
The letter
April
19, 2006. Sumatra´s peat swamp forest threatened with collapse,
must be protected
Environmental
organizations: Unique forest ecosystem in Riau province, Indonesia must
be protected of further damage by loggers and paper industry
>>>
International
press release
>>> Factsheet
on Kampar peninsula and paper industry
April
11, 2006. UPM and 9 years of rainforest destruction
In March
2006 at the time of UPM's AGM coordinator of Jikalahari, Network for
Forest Conservation in Riau from the area where APRIL operates, visited
Finland to highlight problems related to APRIL's operations and to promote
conservation of Kampar peninsula area. UPM has been involved with APRIL
for 9 years already, with a continuous record of rainforest destruction
for pulp.
>
read more
January
27, 2006. Common Vision for Transforming the European Paper Industry
"We,
the undersigned, want to see a future Europe that consumes dramatically
less paper than at present, with all that paper made by an industry
that is less reliant on virgin tree fibres, maximises use of recycled
materials, respects local people’s land rights, provides employment
and has social impacts that are beneficial, conflict-free and fair.
We want to see all of Europe’s paper being made from responsibly- and
sustainably-sourced fibres, using entirely renewable energy, with water
that is as clean after paper production as before, producing zero waste
and zero emissions..."
>
International
press release [pdf]
> Common
Vision for Transforming the European Paper Industry [pdf]
> More data on Taiga
Rescue Network site
March
2005. Proposal for the general meeting of UPM to reform loan and pulp
supply agreement between UPM and APRIL by activist shareholders
Several
activist shareholders have made a proposal for the annual general meeting
of UPM to be held 31 March 2005 in Helsinki regarding pulp procurement
policy of UPM and UPM's relationship with APRIL. Currently UPM is using
pulp from APRIL's destructive pulp mill in Sumatra.
>>>
More information and the proposal
>>> Summons to the general meeting
November
2004. Friends of the Earth Finland briefing on expansion plans of APRIL's
plantations
FoE Finland
has produced a briefing on expansion plans of Indonesian pulp &
paper company APRIL. APRIL is a pulp supplier of the Finland-based company
UPM. Vast tracts of Sumatran rainforests, swamps and tigers are threatened
by APRIL's plantation establishment.
>>>
Download the briefing in pdf format
>>>
The briefing in web page format
>>>
Latar belakang tentang APRIL / the briefing in Indonesian
May 2004.
Robin Wood's report "Clearcut Paper" deals with APRIL
A report
titled "Clearcut paper" by German Robin Wood on destructive
practices of pulp & paper companies in Sumatran province of Riau,
Indonesia, was published. The report deals with APRIL and APP. Both
companies have been largely planned and built by Finnish companies and
have received export guarantees and credits from Finnish government.
>>>
Download the report from Robin Wood's site
In
summer 2002 UPM-Kymmene
announced its plans to enlarge its paper mill in Changshu, China.
The capacity
of the new fine paper machine will be 450 000 tonnes per year. The capacity
of the old machine established in 1996 was 350 000 tonnes. In other
words, the new paper machine would more than double the production capacity.
Now the enlargement has received approval from the Chinese authorities.
A detailed
feasibility study to build the new fine paper machine is currently going
on. The aim is to present the final investment proposal for approval
by UPM-Kymmene's Board of Directors during autumn 2002. The new machine
is scheduled to start-up by the end of the year 2004.
For
more information please check out:
UPM-Kymmene press release 11 July, 2002: "UPM-Kymmene plans to expand
operations in China" at www.upm-kymmene.com
The pulp
to UPM's Changshu mill comes from pulp mill of the Indonesian company
APRIL in Riau province, Sumatra, Indonesia. The vast majority of the
fibre for APRIL´s Riau mill (called RAPP, Riau Andalan Pulp & Paper)
is mixed tropical hardwood obtained through the clearance of natural
rainforest in Sumatra. It is very likely that also UPM's new machine
would use this pulp as APRIL has a supply contract to Changshu mills
until 2007.
February 11, 2002: Report about APRIL's problems
New report
about UPM-Kymmene's Indonesia-connection, APRIL, was published by Friends
of the Earth EWNI in February. The report investigates the forest destruction
and damaging social impacts caused by APRIL. Also Finnish Export Credit
Agency and Merita Bank have been funding APRIL.
>>> Read more about APRIL
FOOLS-report
>>> Report about rainforests
in Riau
>>> Recent photos about
rainforests in Riau
>>> Profits on paper-report about problems associated with
Indonesian pulp industry can be ordered for free from Centre
for International Forestry Research CIFOR
January
2002: UPM-Kymmene and APRIL to negotiate loan extension
UPM-Kymmene
is negotiating with APRIL about extending the USD 121 million loan.
Read
the UPM-Kymmene press release Jan. 8.
NEWS ARCHIVE
August
29, 2000: UPM becomes sole owner of the Chinese Changshu paper mill, APRIL
provides pulp
UPM-Kymmene
announced it will buy out APRIL from the Changshu fine paper mill in
China. At the same time APRIL will enter into a 6,5 year pulp supply
contract to the Changshu paper mill. APRIL will continue to hold an
existing USD 121 million loan from UPM-Kymmene and the loan's new collateral
is Riaupulp's shares that represent approximately 12 percent of the
company's shares. Read
UPM-Kymmene's press release August 23
March
21, 2000: UPM's AGM: Decision to step out of the APRIL-alliance praised,
nomination of former Finnish head of state questioned
PhD Thomas
Wallgren, a known forest activist and shareholder of UPM, thanked UPM-Kymmene
publically for stepping out of the APRIL-alliance in Annual General
Meeting of the company. He also encouraged UPM to stop using pulp originating
from APRIL's Sumatran mills. Mr. Wallgren was also proposed to the company's
board of directors instead of the former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari.
President Ahtisaari was elected overwhelmingly. Read
more about the AGM at the Finnish Nature League theme pages.
February
22, 2000: UPM-Kymmene to merge with Champion / AGM coming up
UPM-Kymmene
announced its merger with North-American forestry giant Champion. The
new company will be known as Champion International. - Individual share
holders' initiatives at the UPM AGM on March 21. Read
more at the Finnish Nature League theme pages.
January
3, 2000: UPM announced it will not exercise the APRIL loan option
UPM-Kymmene
previously held an option to convert a loan APRIL is holding from it
to a 15% share of APRIL's pulp mill in Riau, Sumatra. UPM still uses
pulp from the factory in the Chinese paper mills it owns together with
APRIL. Read
UPM-Kymmene's press release January 3
November
3, 1999: FoE press release: Environmentalists call for avoiding APRIL's
paper
Friends
of the Earth Finland published a call of 28 prominent environmental
organisations to avoid using APRIL's paper products. The declaration
was supported by Indonesian activists from Riau visiting Finland at
the same time. Read
the press release and the declaration.
October
15, 1999: UPM-Kymmene announced it stops selling APRIL's paper in Europe
From the
beginning of year 200 APRIL is going to sell its paper originating from
rainforests of Sumatra through its own sales office in Amsterdam. The
paper goes under a brand name "PaperOne" and is sold by UPM-Kymmene
until the end of this year. Read
APRIL's press release October 14, 1999
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