Norske Skog sells stake in Catalyst Paper to UBS Securities for СAD 192 million

Jan 31, 2006. /Lesprom Network/. Catalyst Paper Corporation announced on Monday January 30 that Norske Skog has entered into an agreement with UBS Securities Canada Inc. for an underwritten secondary offering, on a bought deal basis, of all of the 63 035 942 common shares of Catalyst that Norske Skog owns. This common share offering was priced at $3.05 per share for gross proceeds of CAD 192 million. Catalyst will not receive any proceeds from this offering. Following the offering, Norske Skog will no longer own any shares of Catalyst. In compliance with Canadian securities law requirements, Catalyst is a party to a letter agreement with Norske Skog and the underwriter and has agreed to file a preliminary short form prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces of Canada in connection with the proposed public offering. The transaction is scheduled to close on or about February 16, 2006 and is subject to certain conditions including the issuance of a receipt for a final short form prospectus by the Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Catalyst is a leading producer of mechanical printing papers in North America. The company also produces de-inked and market kraft pulp. With five mills employing 3 800 people at sites within a 160 kilometers radius on the south coast of British Columbia, Catalyst has a combined annual capacity of 2.5 million tonnes of product. The company is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. Norske Skog is the world’s third largest producer of mechanical printing paper. Headquartered in Oslo, Norway, the company operates 19 paper mills in Europe, South America, Australasia and Asia. After divestment of the shares in Catalyst Paper, Norske Skog has a consolidated capacity of 6.7 million tonnes.