Opposition MPs say the foreign owner of one of Canada’s largest forestry companies is closing down an Indonesian-Chinese pulp and paper conglomerate – which he has long denied managing – after acquiring two major Canadian companies. They have expressed concern that the company is officially taking over from the company. and tandem.
half page notice Secretly announced by the European Union on Monday Jackson Wijaya, owner of Paper Excellence, acquires “sole control” of Asia Pulp and Paper from his father, Tegu Ganda Wijaya (also known as Oei Chie Goan). It states that.
CBC News initially contacted Paper Excellence with questions via email on Thursday afternoon, but the company did not immediately respond. Shortly after this article was published on Friday, a spokesperson for Paper Excellence confirmed the ownership transfer of APP, writing in an email that the latest development represented “normal succession planning” by senior Wijaya executives. Ta.
The controversial conglomerate has a record of deforestation in Indonesia and is the next target. Indonesian and global Environmental organization.
After acquiring Canadian pulp and paper company Domtar in 2021 and Resolute Forest Products in 2023 (all with support from the federal government), Paper Excellence became Canada’s largest private forest manager. It managed 22 million hectares of forest, four times the size of Nova. Scotia.
The company has repeatedly stated: Testimony before Congress last year Jackson-Wijaya said he received some support from his family in the early days of Paper Excellence, which he founded in 2007, but the Canadian and foreign organizations have operated completely independently for many years.
“We’ve been completely fooled by a very shady company,” NDP natural resources critic Charlie Angus said in response to this week’s announcement.
“I don’t think the Canadian government would have disapproved of Asian pulp and paper.” [to buy Domtar and Resolute] Due to questionable records. So the family establishes another company. Family members say, “Oh, we have no connection.” Despite the obvious connection, they end up buying Canadian resources. So we are in a completely predictable position,” Angus said.
Jennifer Johnson, vice president of communications for Paper Excellence, which announced last month that it would adopt the name “Domtar” as its business name, strongly disputed that idea.
“Domtar (formerly Paper Excellence) Group was founded by Jackson Wijaya as a singular initiative aimed at building a business that reflected his ambitions and values,” Johnson said in an email to CBC. I wrote it by email. “Our key message to all Domtar executives and employees is that they must always act only in Domtar’s and Domtar’s own best interests.”
“I am deeply concerned.”
Conservative natural resources critic Shannon Stubbs said the news is “deeply concerning for Canadian workers and communities” as job losses and plant closures increase in the country’s forestry sector. Ta.
“The Liberal Party must answer to Canadians and be transparent after claims that the purchase of the Canadian mill had nothing to do with Asia Pulp and Paper,” he said in a statement.
Audrey Champeau, spokesperson for Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne, said that under the Investment Canada Act, which allows the federal cabinet to potentially block foreign investment in Canada on economic or national security grounds, the government is currently unable to do so. He said there was little that could be done.
The law “applies to investments in Canada by non-Canadians,” Champeau said. “Asia Pulp and Paper is a group of companies headquartered in Indonesia and China and is a separate legal entity from Paper Excellence. As such, the change in ownership of Asia Pulp is not subject to Investment Canada Act. ”
Since 2010, Paper Excellence has received hundreds of millions of dollars in federal and state loans and grants with the promise of revitalizing and hiring some economically hard-hit communities. But it ultimately closed numerous factories, including Powell River and Mackenzie in Ontario, Española, British Columbia, and Pictou in New South Wales. The company currently has more than 30 factories in Canada, the United States, Brazil and France.
Mr Johnson, a spokesperson for Paper Excellence, said the company had an “exemplary” track record of investing in businesses and “this commitment to investing remains unchanged”.
A joint investigation last year by the CBC and various Canadian and international media outlets found that in 2020, Paper Excellence worked with Asia Pulp and Paper on market research, business strategy and legal filings, and on pricing and sales volumes. Extensive evidence was uncovered that he had even sought instructions. .
“Very opaque”
Priyanka Vittal, a lawyer with Greenpeace Canada, said environmental groups are concerned that the lines between Paper Excellence and its foreign peers are disappearing because the company is a key national resource. It is a privately held company that controls much of the company, which is partly why there is little financial transparency, he said. .
“It’s very opaque, and the concern is what that means in terms of their operations and accountability in Canada’s forests,” Vital said.
Competition Bureau of Canada spokesperson Jamie Albert said the agency considered whether there were strong common interests between Paper Excellence and Asia Pulp & Paper when considering Paper Excellence’s acquisition of Domtar. said.
Bureau I decided that Even if it existed, it would not “substantially reduce” competition, meaning it would likely have approved the acquisition regardless.
