In addition to the progress we made with product mix enhancements, I am pleased to report a number of other noteworthy events in 2004:
The South Carolina Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers named our Catawba operation as the state’s 2004 Manufacturer of the Year. This honor recognizes world-class standards achieved in the area of manufacturing, environmental stewardship, employee and community programs.
Taking advantage of strong coated paper markets, the Catawba mill achieved a record level of production. We believe that our 2003 conversion of a large newsprint machine at this site has made Catawba the lowest-cost coated paper operation in North America.
We had our best safety performance in the past five years, and we remain committed to excellence in this area across all of our operations.
We expanded the recycling facility at Calhoun, Tennessee, thereby increasing the mill’s recycled newsprint content to 35%, well above the industry average.
In connection with the 50th anniversary of our Calhoun mill, we announced plans to contribute more than 3,700 acres of pristine woodlands in Tennessee to the state’s Cumberland Trail system.
As part of the 75th anniversary of our Mersey mill, we also designated almost 1,200 acres of Nova Scotia forestland for environmental protection.
We took advantage of favorable capital markets to improve liquidity by refinancing a portion of our debt with a $250 million floating rate note issue and successfully replacing our credit facilities.
