Stora Enso Oyj - Company Announcement

Stora Enso Fine Paper plans to increase competitiveness by restructuring operations

Helsinki, Finland, 2011-05-03 08:00 CEST (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STORA ENSO OYJ
STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE 3 May 2011 at 9.00 EET 

Stora Enso's Fine Paper Business Area is re-evaluating its working methods and
building a new business model to increase cost competitiveness. According to
the plans, Stora Enso would restructure operations at Nymölla Mill in Sweden.
At Uetersen Mill in Germany the plan is to restructure operations more towards
Speciality Papers and at Oulu Mill in Finland, together with the sheeting
plants in Belgium and the United Kingdom, find the most efficient way to
utilise the converting capacity and streamline operations. 

“The plans announced today would make Stora Enso Fine Paper more flexible and
cost efficient, and so better able to meet customer and market expectations.
Fine paper demand is still clearly below pre-crisis levels, and there are no
signs of sustained recovery. We have been successfully remodelling our
operations during the past few years, and now we plan to continue on the chosen
path of improving our existing businesses. We are comparing the best practices
at all our mills so we can continuously adopt the most efficient ways of
working. Similarly, we need to question our way of running the operations.
These plans are part of rethinking in Stora Enso, but of course rethink means
much more for us, such as new products and services, new solutions with our
customers - better solutions for the future,” says Hannu Alalauri, EVP, Fine
Paper Business Area. 

Stora Enso Fine Paper plans to reduce annual costs by approximately EUR 20
million, starting during 2011 with all actions to be completed by the end of
the second quarter of 2012. The proposed restructuring measures would affect
altogether up to 285 employees in Finland, Sweden, Germany, Belgium and the
United Kingdom. Stora Enso will record a cash provision of approximately EUR 16
million as a non-recurring item in its second quarter of 2011 operating profit.
The plans would not affect the Business Area's paper production capacities. 

The outcome of the plans will depend on the result of the local
co-determination procedures. As before, Stora Enso would make every effort in
co-operation with local communities to help the affected personnel find new
employment opportunities, and all job openings in other Stora Enso units would
be available to those affected. 

For further information, please contact:
Hannu Alalauri, EVP, Fine Paper Business Area, tel. +358 2046 21228
Ulla Paajanen-Sainio, Head of Investor Relations, tel. +358 2046 21242
Päivi Kauhanen, Director, Communications, tel. +358 2046 21292

www.storaenso.com
www.storaenso.com/investors

Stora Enso is the global rethinker of the packaging, paper and wood products
industry. We always rethink the old and expand to the new to offer our
customers innovative solutions based on renewable materials. Stora Enso employs
some 26 000 people worldwide, and our sales in 2010 amounted to EUR 10.3
billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki (STEAV, STERV) and
Stockholm (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA as ADRs
(SEOAY) in the International OTCQX over-the-counter market. 

STORA ENSO OYJ