Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, 01 February 2010 – Catalyst Paper (TSX:CTL) announced today that it has decided to defer proceeding with a previously announced proposed rights offering.

In November, 2009 the company announced, in conjunction with an exchange offer involving its outstanding 8 5/8% senior notes due 15 June 2011, (the exchange offer), that upon completion of the exchange offer it intended to conduct a rights offering to raise proceeds of up to CAD 100 million.

Last week, the company announced that it had amended the terms of the exchange offer. The company also announced the resignation of Richard Garneau, the chief executive officer, effective 28 April 2010. A search for a successor is underway and the board has determined that completing this succession process is desirable before initiating the proposed rights offering. As a result of this and current market and industry conditions, the company has reconsidered the timing of the proposed rights offering and will not proceed with it at this time.

Catalyst Paper manufactures diverse specialty printing papers, newsprint, and pulp. Its customers include retailers, publishers, and commercial printers in North America, Latin America, the Pacific Rim, and Europe. With six mills located in British Columbia, Canada, and Arizona, USA, Catalyst has a combined annual production capacity of 2.5 million metric tons. The company is headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, and its common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol CTL. Catalyst is listed on the Jantzi Social Index and is also ranked by Corporate Knights as one of the 50 Best Corporate Citizens in Canada.