NewPage files for bankruptcy
Less than a month after sounding an alarm over its finances, Ohio-based NewPage has filed for bankruptcy.
In today's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, the company, which operates a mill in Rumford, listed total assets of more than $1 billion and at least $1 billion in debt, according to Bloomberg News. NewPage also said it has obtained a commitment led by JP Morgan for up to $600 million in debtor-in-possession financing, which Chief Financial Officer Jay Epstein said will allow the company to continue operating its U.S. businesses, Reuters reported. Last month, NewPage halted work at its Canadian subsidiary, NewPage Port Hawkesbury Corp., and is looking for potential buyers for that division. "We strongly believe that the court-supervised restructuring we began today is the most effective means of strengthening our financial position and enhancing our standing as the leading producer of printing and specialty paper in North America," President and CEO George Martin said in a statement.
NewPage has 6,000 employees, 700 of whom work at the Rumford mill. In a quarterly report filed last month, the company said it had hired advisers to explore restructuring its debt, but said it could file for bankruptcy if efforts to restructure or boost cash flow were unsuccessful. In 2005, New York private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management bought NewPage for $2.3 billion, and NewPage has been unprofitable since 2006, according to Bloomberg.
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