After the failure of the recent restructuring plan – debt conversion into equity and a capital increase through the issue of new shares – paper machines at Slovenia’s publication and packaging paper producer Vipap Videm continue to rest, while the future of the company and its nearly 300 employees remains uncertain.
According to information from the company, the shareholders did not support the proposed restructuring measures at the latest shareholders meeting on 16th September. The proposals made by the company’s management were urgently needed for the financial stabilisation of Vipap, which is a condition for completing the operational restructuring from the newspaper to the packaging segment.
The paper mill in Krško houses three paper machines with a total capacity of 200,000 tpy of newsprint, magazine paper and flexible packaging papers. According to media reports, production has been down since a technical defect occurred in mid-July. The problem was fixed in August, but there was not enough working capital to restart production.
A possible way out of the current crisis could be to sell the company. Vipap’s management had been already looking for potential investors and buyers for some time.