It all started several hundred
years ago

Metsä Tissue as a company has its origins in G.A. Serlachius Oy, a Finnish wood processing company founded in 1868. Serlachius and later Metsä-Serla have been pioneering and leading manufacturers of tissue paper products in Finland since the beginning of the 20th century.

In 1986, a new company was formed

Serlachius commenced production of bathroom tissue in 1908 and production of greaseproof paper in 1924. The first tissue-based napkins and handkerchiefs were introduced in Finland by Serlachius in the 1930's. The first modern tissue paper machine started production at the Mänttä mill in 1961. During the same year, greaseproof paper for baking and cooking uses was introduced. The brand name Serla was launched in the 1960s for kitchen towels, handkerchiefs, baking and cooking paper products as well as for bathroom tissue. In 1986, Serlachius merged with Metsäliiton Teollisuus Oy, a Finnish forest products company, to form a new company named Metsä-Serla Oyj.

Market leader in the Nordic countries

As Holmen Hygiene was heavily lossmaking at the time of its acquisition, a number of restructuring measures were implemented by Metsä-Serla. Holmen Hygiene's production facilities outside the Nordic countries and its diaper and sanitary towel operations were sold in 1989 and its remaining operations in Sweden were generally streamlined. The acquisition of Holmen Hygiene included the brand names Lambi®, Leni® and Katrin®, which together with Serla®, Mola and Fasana today form the core of the Metsä Tissue's brand name portfolio.

Towards a strong position in Europe

During the last few years, Metsä Tissue has pursued the expansion of its operations outside the Nordic countries by acquiring a majority shareholding in one of Poland's leading tissue producers and by acquiring two German tissue manufacturers. Currently, Metsä Tissue is the fourth largest tissue paper supplier in Europe.

In May 1997 Metsä Tissue signed an agreement to acquire a majority shareholding in Warszawskie Zaklady Papiernicze S.A. (WZP). Founded in 1760, WZP is one of Poland's leading tissue paper manufacturers. Its production plant is located some 20 kilometres south of Warsaw.

In December 1998 Metsä Tissue acquired two German tissue paper manufacturers, Papierwerke Halstrick GmbH and Strepp GmbH & Co. KG Hochkoppelmühle. Both were well-known family-owned companies. By way of these acquisitions, the Group's core market area expanded beyond the Nordic countries to continental Europe north of the Alps, a region that has over 200 million consumers.

In October 2002 Metsä Tissue acquired a major shareholding in Zaklady Papiernicze w Krapkowicach S.A., a Polish tissue manufacturer with a mill in Krapkowice. Metsä Tissue thus became the largest supplier of tissue paper products in Poland.

In April 2003 Metsä Tissue acquired a major shareholding in the Polish tissue products converter Krapex. The Krapex converting mill is situated close to the Krapkowice mill. This made Metsä Tissue the largest supplier of away-from-home tissue paper products in Poland.

Changes in ownership structure

In February 2003 M-real annouced a redemption offer for all issued and outstanding shares and warrants in Metsä Tissue. In June 2003 Metsä Tissue's share was delisted from the Main List of Helsinki Exchanges. The ownership of all shares of Metsä Tissue Oyj was transferred to the redeemer, M-real Corporation in the redemption process.

M-real Corporation sold in January 2004 66 % of Metsä Tissue's business activities to Metsäliitto Cooperative and 17 % to Tapiola Group, a Finnish insurance company. 9.86 % of the shares were sold to Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company and 7.14 % to Sampo Life Insurance Company Ltd.

Read more about Metsäliitto at www.metsaliitto.com.

Continued growth

In January 2006 Metsä Tissue acquired Tento a.s., the leading tissue paper company in Slovakia. This made Metsä Tissue the market leader in Czech Republic and Slovakia.

The former President and CEO of Tento a.s. Jozef Antošík became a member of the Metsä Tissue's Board of Directors. He owns 15 % of Metsä Tissue's shares. The other shareholders are Metsäliitto Cooperative 56.1 %, Tapiola Group 14.4%, Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company 8.4% and Sampo Life Insurance Company Ltd. 6.1%.