It is well known that Jackson Wijaya, the ultimate and sole owner of Paper Excellence, is the son of the current head of APP. In the early days, Jackson benefited from some experience gained from the family business early in his life, as well as support getting his company started. This is hardly a unique or exceptional circumstance.
The situation is entirely different today. Jackson operates his Paper Excellence independently. Many stakeholders and regulators - global funding institutions, regulatory bodies and certifiers, among others - have acknowledged this reality. Paper Excellence's acquisition of Resolute was extensively reviewed under the Investment Canada Act.
As we have expanded our business, we have looked for companies and markets steeped in long traditions and with best practices to share in these areas.
Our recent acquisitions of Domtar and Resolute were spurred certainly by undervalued businesses that we believe with meaningful investment can be improved and modernized, but equally by the rich experience and expertise of the leadership, and deep understanding of the norms and values of the markets in which they operate.
The leaders and workers of Domtar and Resolute have set the highest standards for sustainable forestry the businesses they operate, both in business practices and environmental standards, and we both sought that out and uphold those standards. Working with our teams in each of the businesses, we have investment plans that support local communities, create and maintain good jobs, and do so in an environmentally sustainable way.
Paper Excellence is committed to conducting business in a manner that protects the environment, conserves resources, minimizes its environmental footprint and ensures sustainable development. We strictly comply with government regulations everywhere we operate in Canada, in the U.S. and in Europe.
We want to be crystal clear:
- We have no outstanding loans from any Chinese institution, nor any other financial ties to China.
- Paper Excellence is separate and entirely independent from Asia Pulp and Paper, which is controlled by other members of the Wijaya family.
- There is no involvement of any other Wijaya family member in Paper Excellence or Fibre Excellence.
- Paper Excellence and Fibre Excellence strictly comply with environmental regulations. Thanks to ongoing investments, the environmental performance of operations continues to improve.
None of the reports published in recent days have brought that into question.
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