ICL, AbitibiBowater sign on to attend, Liverpool readies to welcome symposium delegates and guests

NEW YORK October 01, 2009 - Two of the leading companies in the forest products industry confirmed their plans to attend the 6-9 Oct 2009 PPI Tranport Symposium 18 in Liverpool, England, as the city finalizes its preparations to welcome delegates and guests, announced the International Forest Products Transport Association (IFPTA) and RISI.

Independent Container Lines (ICL) and AbitibiBowater join delegates from nearly 30 countries around the world, one of the strongest fields of delegates in the Symposium's history. The companies add to the distinguished representation by leading producers and carriers at the event, a sign of the widening scope of the forest products transport industry.

"Bringing together all of the various aspects of the forest products tranport industry has always been a major part of PPI Transport Symposium," said Paul Doiron, IFPTA President. "Being able to hear different points of view and different sides of the story gives our delegates the best opportunity to understand what is happening in the industry, and what will happen in the future."

ICL is one of the leading container shipping lines serving the forest products industry. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, USA, the world-class carrier provides international container transportation between Liverpool, UK; Antwerp, Belgium; Chester, PA; and Wilmington, NC. In addition to forest products, high tech textiles, automotive and construction equipment are key sectors that use ICL's service. Receiving numerous industry awards, ICL has built it's reputation on a customer-driven approach and a reputation for on-time services.

AbitibiBower produces a wide range of newsprint, commercial printing papers, market pulp and wood products. It is the eighth largest publicly traded pulp and paper manufacturer in the world. AbitibiBowater owns or operates 23 pulp and paper facilities and 30 wood products facilities located in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and South Korea. Marketing its products in more than 90 countries, the Company is also among the world's largest recyclers of old newspapers and magazines, and has third-party certified 100% of its managed woodlands to sustainable forest management standards.

About PPI Transport Symposium 18

PPI Transport Symposium is the leading biennial conference and exhibition for the global forest products logistics industry. It is dedicated exclusively to the worldwide transport, materials handling, and distribution of forest products. Organized by RISI and the International Forest Products Transport Association (IFPTA), PPI Transport Symposium 18, scheduled for October 6-9, 2009 in Liverpool, England, will offer a comprehensive conference program, an associated exhibition, and a tour of the Port of Liverpool. For more information, visit www.transportsymposium.com.

About RISI

RISI is the leading information provider for the global forest products industry. The company works with clients in the pulp and paper, wood products, wood biomass, tissue, timber, nonwovens, printing and publishing and financial services industries to help them make better decisions. Headquartered in Boston (Bedford), Massachusetts, RISI operates offices in Brussels, Belgium; Atlanta, Georgia; San Francisco, California; Portland, Oregon; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Shanghai, China; Singapore; Helsinki, Finland; and Charlottesville, Virginia. More information can be found at www.risi.com.

About IFPTA

The International Forest Products Transport Association (IFPTA) was established in 1982 as an organization for professionals within the global forest products logistics industry. The Association provides a networking framework to encourage communication and innovation among all roles and participants in the industry. The IFPTA supports the IFPTA Journal, produces various regional seminars, and organizes the biennial PPI Transport Symposium in conjunction with RISI. For more information, visit www.ifpta.org.