Stora Enso Will Take an Impairment Charge of About EUR 347 Million in the Third Quarter of 2009

• Press Release
• Source: Stora Enso Oyj
• On 2:18 am EDT, Wednesday August 19, 2009

HELSINKI, Finland, Aug. 19, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stora Enso has undertaken goodwill and fixed asset impairment testing during the third quarter of 2009. The resultant impairment charge will have a negative non-cash impact of about EUR 347 million on the Group's third quarter operating profit, which will be reported as non-recurring item. This impairment charge is in addition to the fixed asset impairment of EUR 245 million announced earlier today in respect of asset restructuring. The impairment charge is due to the weak long-term outlook, especially for publication and fine papers.

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{"s" : "seoay.pk","k" : "c10,l10,p20,t10","o" : "","j" : ""}

The debt equity ratio will increase from 0.53 to 0.59 (based on the second quarter 2009 debt to equity ratio) as a result of the combined impact of the fixed asset impairment testing and asset restructuring.

Allocation of impairment charge between segments

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  Segment                              Impairment Q3/2009*
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  Newsprint                            EUR   30 million
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  Magazine Paper                       EUR 116 million
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  Fine Paper                           EUR 155 million
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  Consumer Board                       EUR   24 million
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  Industrial Packaging                 EUR   22 million
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  Total                                EUR 347 million
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*All charges have no cash impact.

Stora Enso is the world leader in forest industry sustainability. We offer our customers solutions based on renewable raw materials. Our products provide a climate-friendly alternative to many non-renewable materials, and have a smaller carbon footprint. Stora Enso is included in the Global 100 list of the world's most sustainable companies. Stora Enso is also listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, the FTSE4Good Index, and the Climate Disclosure Leadership Index. Stora Enso employs 29 000 people worldwide, and our sales in 2008amounted to EUR 11.0 billion.

STORA ENSO OYJ

Jari Suvanto

Ulla Paajanen-Sainio

Stora Enso Oyj
Markus Rauramo, CFO
+358 2046 21452
Ulla Paajanen-Sainio, Head of Investor Relations
+358 40 763 8767
www.storaenso.com
www.storaenso.com/investors