AbitibiBowater Files for U.K. Administration of Bridgewater Subsidiary

AbitibiBowater, Montreal, Que., Canada, announced this week that its Bridgewater Paper Co. Ltd. (BPCL) subsidiary has filed for administration in the United Kingdom. The company noted that the BPCL Board of Directors made this decision only after all other options to keep the U.K. operations solvent were exhausted.

The AbitibiBowater creditor protection proceedings and the BPCL filing for administration are separate and distinct legal processes, the company added. The possible outcomes of its creditor protection filings will not necessarily reflect on the future of BPCL in its administration filing, and vice versa. AbitibiBowater's ongoing efforts to restructure and emerge from its creditor protection filings continue to progress in the normal course.

"We recognize the impact the filing has on our U.K. employees and business partners; however, these actions were necessary and represent the best course of action going forward," stated David Paterson, AbitibiBowater president and CEO.

AbitibiBowater owns or operates 23 pulp and paper facilities and 28 wood products in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and South Korea.

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