International Paper Completes Sale of Arizona Chemical to Rhone Capital

Memphis, Tennessee, USA, 28 February 2007 -- /PRNewswire/ -- International Paper (NYSE:IP) today completed the sale of its Arizona Chemical business to Rhone Capital III L.P. for approximately USD 485 million. In addition, International Paper will acquire a minority interest of approximately 10% in the acquisition vehicle to be formed by Rhone Capital.

Arizona Chemical (www.arizonachemical.com) has been a global leader in pine chemistry for more than 75 years. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and supplies high-quality pine chemicals to the adhesives, inks and coatings, and oleochemicals markets.

Arizona Chemical has 11 manufacturing facilities worldwide, located in Panama City, Pensacola, and Port St. Joe, Florida; Savannah and Valdosta, Georgia; Dover, Ohio; Bedlington and Chester-le-Street, England; Niort, France; Oulu, Finland; and Sandarne, Sweden. Arizona Chemical also has research and development capabilities and a network of sales offices throughout the world, including a research and European headquarters in Almere, Netherlands, as well as a research laboratory in Savannah. The company employs nearly 1500 team members.

About Rhone Capital

Rhone Capital specializes in mid-market leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, and partnerships with particular focus on European and trans-Atlantic investments. The acquisition of Arizona Chemical will be an investment of Rhone's third private equity fund.

About International Paper

Headquartered in the United States, International Paper has been a leader in the forest products industry for more than 100 years. The company is currently transforming its operations to focus on its global uncoated papers and packaging businesses, which operate and serve customers in the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia, as well as xpedx, an extensive North American merchant distribution system. International Paper is committed to environmental, economic, and social sustainability, and has a long-standing policy of using no wood from endangered forests. To learn more, visit www.internationalpaper.com.

Source: International Paper