Willamette Industries Inc · 8-K · For 3/14/96 · EX-99

Filed On 3/14/96   ·   SEC File 0-03730   ·   Accession Number 892917-96-49

Current Report   ·   Form 8-K
Filing Table of Contents

Document/Exhibit                   Description                      Pages   Size 

 1: 8-K         Current Report                                         3     10K 
 2: EX-99       Press Release                                          1      7K 

EX-99   ·   Press Release

EX-99
TOC
Top
Previous
Next
Bottom
Just 1st
 

EXHIBIT 99    

Willamette Industries Acquires Cavenham Properties                              

  Portland, Oregon (NASDAQ/WMTT) Willamette Industries, Inc. has
entered into an agreement to acquire the timber operations of Cavenham Forest   
Industries, an affiliate of Hanson PLC, in Louisiana and the Pacific            
Northwest.  The purchase price for the 1,088,000 acres of timberland and the    
Warrenton, Oregon sawmill is $1.588 billion.                                    
  Willamette intends to retain and operate Cavenham's sawmill in
Warrenton and its timberland in northwest Oregon, southwest Washington and      
north central Louisiana, valued at about $1 billion.                            
   Crown Pacific Partners, L.P., Hancock Timber Resource Group and
Temple-Inland, Inc. have all expressed an interest in acquiring some of the     
remaining properties.                                                           
       Willamette has agreements in principle with Crown Pacific for Crown
to acquire 207,000 acres located in eastern Oregon and on the Olympic           
Peninsula in Washington and with Temple-Inland, which will acquire              
approximately 230,000 acres in southwest Louisiana.  Discussions are underway   
with Hancock about its acquisition of approximately 104,000 acres in Columbia   
County, Oregon.                                                                 
    Steven R. Rogel, Willamette's chief executive officer, said that
the acquisition offers the company an opportunity to develop its resource       
base:  "We were able to obtain some of the most productive timberlands in the   
world at a very attractive price relative to their productivity.  This          
resource base, combined with our production and marketing abilities, will       
give us a strong platform for building shareholder value.                       
       "In north central Louisiana, Cavenham and Willamette lands exist in
an interwoven pattern in many areas," Rogel said.  "This was an unprecedented   
opportunity to allow us to expand the resource base in our current operating    
area.                                                                           
  "In Oregon, the Clackamas County lands will allow our existing
Oregon facilities to ultimately reach 100% fiber self-sufficiency.  The         
Northwest Oregon timberlands and the Warrenton mill allow us to rebuild our     
West Coast lumber production from a self-sufficient resource base.  This        
acquisition is an important step for Willamette, helping assure a future        
fiber supply."                                                                  
    After giving effect to this acquisition, Willamette will have 96
forest products manufacturing facilities in 21 states with more than 13,300     
employees.                                                                      
      Hanson PLC is a British-American industrial management corporation
with market leadership in basic industries.  Its U.S. operations include        
Peabody Holding Company, Quantum Chemical, SCM Chemicals, Grove Crane,          
Cornerstone Construction and Materials and Cavenham Forest Industries.