Abitibi-Consolidated
A Canadian pulp, paper, forestry, recycling, and hydroelectric company that became a major newsprint producer before merging with Bowater in 2007.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Abitibi-Consolidated was a Canadian forest-products company headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. It was formed on May 29, 1997, through the merger of Abitibi-Price Inc. and Stone Consolidated Corp., bringing together two substantial Canadian paper and forestry businesses. The resulting company focused on newsprint, commercial printing papers, pulp, lumber, engineered wood, recycling, and related forest-products activities. It also owned hydroelectric generating assets in eastern Canada, where company-built power facilities supported several mill operations. The company inherited a long industrial history. One predecessor, Abitibi Power and Paper, began in Ontario in 1912 and expanded through paper mills, hydroelectric projects, forestry holdings, and related community infrastructure. The other major lineage ran through Price Brothers, a Quebec lumber and paper enterprise whose origins reached back to the William Price Company, established in 1820. These businesses helped build the Canadian pulp and paper industry and contributed to the development of mill towns in remote regions. A separate predecessor, Consolidated-Bathurst, traced its history to paper operations in New Brunswick and later became Stone Consolidated after its acquisition by Stone Container Corporation. At its height, Abitibi-Consolidated operated a network of 19 paper mills, 20 sawmills, four remanufacturing facilities, and two engineered-wood facilities in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The company supplied publishers, printers, building-products distributors, and housing manufacturers. It was described as a global leader in newsprint and commercial printing papers and as one of the largest recyclers of newspapers and magazines, with recycling operations serving metropolitan areas in North America and the United Kingdom. Its certified woodland holdings ranked among the largest in Canada. The company employed approximately 12,500 people and reported combined revenue of approximately $4.85 billion in 2006; this figure is historical and relates to the 2006 financial year. Abitibi-Consolidated’s business model was vertically integrated. Its forestlands supplied fibre, its mills manufactured paper and pulp, its sawmills and engineered-wood plants served construction-related markets, and its recycling operations recovered fibre from used newspapers and magazines. Hydroelectric assets provided electricity to some eastern Canadian facilities and extended the company’s activities into energy generation. In 2000, it acquired a majority interest in Donohue Inc., another Canadian integrated forest-products company, strengthening its industrial and forestry footprint. The company operated during a period of structural change in the paper industry. Newspaper circulation and newsprint consumption came under increasing pressure from digital media, while paper producers faced high fixed costs, excess capacity, changing prices, and substantial capital requirements. These conditions contributed to industry consolidation and made scale an important strategic consideration. On January 29, 2007, Abitibi-Consolidated and Bowater announced plans to merge. The transaction created AbitibiBowater, described at the time as the third-largest pulp and paper company in North America and the eighth-largest in the world. Abitibi-Consolidated ceased to exist as an independent operating company after the combination. The successor company later changed its name to Resolute Forest Products in 2011.
History
Abitibi-Consolidated was the product of a long sequence of mergers and acquisitions in the Canadian pulp, paper, lumber, and forestry industries. Its principal predecessor, Abitibi Pulp and Paper, was established in Ontario in 1912 by Frank Harris Anson. The company soon adopted the name Abitibi Power and Paper to reflect the hydroelectric facilities it developed to supply electricity to its mills. As it expanded, it established or supported mill communities, added forestry operations, and became an important North American newsprint producer. The Great Depression severely affected Abitibi Power and Paper. The company entered bankruptcy protection in 1932 and remained under the supervision of a court-appointed receiver until 1946, a period described as the longest receivership in Canadian history. After emerging from bankruptcy, it benefited from the postwar industrial expansion and changed its name to Abitibi Paper Company in 1965. Another important lineage came from Price Brothers. The business began in Quebec as the William Price Company in 1820 and developed from lumber into a substantial forest-products enterprise. Abitibi acquired a controlling interest in Price Brothers in 1974, combining major Ontario and Quebec operations and creating what was then the world’s largest newsprint producer. The company adopted the name Abitibi-Price in 1979. In 1981, Olympia and York Developments acquired control. Abitibi-Price later purchased the Hilroy companies in 1982, adding a significant Canadian office-stationery business. After Olympia and York collapsed in 1992, a banking consortium temporarily controlled Abitibi-Price. The company returned to public ownership through a share issue in 1994, while Hilroy was sold to Mead Corporation. The other principal corporate predecessor was Consolidated-Bathurst. Bathurst Power and Paper built a mill in New Brunswick in 1914. Power Corporation of Canada obtained majority control in the late 1930s and acquired Consolidated Paper in the early 1960s. Following Paul Desmarais’s acquisition of control of Power Corporation, the businesses were combined as Consolidated-Bathurst. In 1989, Stone Container Corporation of Chicago acquired the company and renamed it Stone Consolidated. Abitibi-Price and Stone Consolidated merged on May 29, 1997, forming Abitibi-Consolidated. The new company combined paper mills, sawmills, forestry assets, recycling operations, and related energy infrastructure. It developed a broad international customer base, supplying publishers, printers, building-products distributors, and housing manufacturers. By the middle of the 2000s, its network included 19 paper mills, 20 sawmills, four remanufacturing facilities, and two engineered-wood facilities in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The company also held substantial certified woodlands and hydroelectric generating assets and was a major recycler of newspapers and magazines. The company’s operating environment deteriorated as digital media reduced demand for newspapers and newsprint. The sector also faced pricing pressure, high fixed costs, excess capacity, and the need to rationalize mills and other assets. Abitibi-Consolidated pursued further scale, including its 2000 acquisition of a majority interest in Donohue Inc. On January 29, 2007, it and Bowater announced a merger. The combination created AbitibiBowater, then described as the third-largest pulp and paper company in North America and the eighth-largest worldwide. Abitibi-Consolidated no longer operated as a separate company after the merger. AbitibiBowater subsequently changed its name to Resolute Forest Products in 2011.
- 2011
Successor adopts the Resolute Forest Products name
[2]AbitibiBowater was renamed Resolute Forest Products.
- 2007
Merger with Bowater
[1]Abitibi-Consolidated merged with Bowater to create AbitibiBowater.
- 2000
Donohue acquisition
[1]Abitibi-Consolidated acquired a majority shareholding in Donohue Inc.
- 1997
Abitibi-Consolidated is formed
[1]Abitibi-Price and Stone Consolidated merged on May 29, creating Abitibi-Consolidated.
- 1989
Stone Container acquires Consolidated-Bathurst
[1]Stone Container Corporation acquired Consolidated-Bathurst and renamed it Stone Consolidated.
- 1982
Abitibi-Price acquires Hilroy
[1]The acquisition expanded Abitibi-Price into office stationery and strengthened its vertical integration in the Canadian market.
- 1979
The company adopts the Abitibi-Price name
[1]The corporate name was changed to Abitibi-Price.
- 1974
Abitibi acquires control of Price Brothers
[1]The acquisition combined Abitibi’s operations with Price Brothers’ extensive Quebec forestry and paper assets.
- 1946
Abitibi emerges from receivership
[1]The company emerged from court-appointed receivership after a prolonged restructuring period.
- 1932
Abitibi enters bankruptcy protection
[1]The Great Depression forced Abitibi Power and Paper to seek bankruptcy protection.
Products and positioning
A vertically integrated North American forest-products producer with particular strength in newsprint, commercial printing papers, pulp, recycling, and wood products.
Printing paper
Newsprint
Newsprint was Abitibi-Consolidated’s defining product and one of the company’s largest businesses. It supplied paper for newspapers and other high-volume publishing applications through a large mill network in North America and the United Kingdom. The company’s historical position as a major global newsprint producer reflected the scale of its integrated forestry, pulp, paper, recycling, and energy operations.
Printing paper
Commercial printing papers
Commercial printing papers served publishers, printers, and other customers beyond the newspaper market. This line gave the company exposure to broader printed-media applications while using many of the same pulp, paper-making, forestry, and distribution capabilities that supported its newsprint business.
Pulp
Pulp
Pulp was produced as a core forest-products output and as an input supporting the company’s paper manufacturing operations. Its integrated fibre supply and mill system allowed Abitibi-Consolidated to connect forestry resources with pulp and finished-paper production.
Wood products
Lumber and wood products
The company’s sawmills supplied lumber and related wood products to building-products distributors and housing manufacturers. These operations broadened Abitibi-Consolidated beyond paper and used the same forest-resource base that supported its pulp and paper mills.
Wood products
Engineered wood products
Engineered wood was manufactured at dedicated facilities and sold into construction and housing-related markets. It formed part of the company’s effort to maintain a diversified forest-products portfolio alongside newsprint, commercial papers, pulp, and conventional lumber.
Recycling
Recycling services
Abitibi-Consolidated was among the large recyclers of newspapers and magazines in North America and the United Kingdom. Its recycling activities recovered fibre from metropolitan waste streams and supported the company’s paper-making system by returning recovered material to production.
Energy
Hydroelectric power
Hydroelectric generating assets in eastern Canada supplied power to associated production facilities and provided a cost advantage for some mills. The assets originated partly from the need to generate electricity for early paper operations and represented an extension of the company into energy infrastructure.
Brand decisions
2007
Merge with BowaterM&ABackground
The paper industry was facing declining newsprint demand, competitive pressure, and a need for greater operating scale.
Action taken
Abitibi-Consolidated and Bowater combined to form AbitibiBowater.
Aftermath
Abitibi-Consolidated ceased to operate as an independent company. The successor later adopted the Resolute Forest Products name in 2011.
2000
Acquire a majority interest in DonohueM&ABackground
The acquisition took place as Abitibi-Consolidated pursued scale and broader integration in the Canadian forest-products sector.
Action taken
Abitibi-Consolidated acquired a majority shareholding in Donohue Inc.
Aftermath
The transaction expanded Abitibi-Consolidated’s integrated forest-products presence before its later combination with Bowater.
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