Indah Kiat Pulp and Paper

Asia Pulp & Paper was founded as Tjiwi Kimia by Eka Tjipta Widjaja who at the time was a refiner of coconut oil. In 1972 he started Pabrik Kertas Tjiwi Kimia along with Taiwanese investors with the purpose of making paper. Widjaja was already operating what became known as Sinar Mas Group, and started Tjiwi Kimia based on his success in commodities.In December 1976, Indah Kiat was formed as a joint venture between CV Berkat , Chung Hwa Pulp Corporation, and Yuen Foong Yu Paper Manufacturing Company. Sinar Mas acquired 67 percent of the venture's total shares. Tjiwi Kimia was listed on the Jakarta and Surabaya Stock Exchanges beginning in 1990. In 1992, Tjiwi Kimia began establishing paper industries in Yangtze and Pearl Delta in China, leading to paper mills Ningbo Zhonghua, Goldeast Paper, Ningbo Asia, Gold Huasheng, Gold Hongye, Hainan Jinhai Pulp and Paper, and Guangxi Jingui Pulp & Paper.In 1994, Sinar Mas incorporated Asia Pulp & Paper in Singapore, consolidated its pulp and paper operations in Indonesia by combing operations from Tjiwi Kimia and PT Inda Kiat Pulp & Paper. The following year it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. It began investing capital to become an industry leader in paper and pulp, spending $4.7 billion on capital investments in 1996 and 1997. By 1999, its total paper and packaging production was more than four million metric tonnes per year.During the Asian Debt Crises in 2001, APP defaulted on $13.9 billion of debt. The default was reported as the largest debt default in the history of the Asian markets, with APP also filing for bankruptcy in the United States. The default was attributed to the drop in pulp and paper prices as well as years of aggressive expansion by the company. In November 2003, Jakarta-based subsidiary Indah Kiat sued the underwriter and holders of an issue of debt it had issued in 1994 under New York law; it sued, however, in Indonesia, and in February 2007 the Indonesian court declared the debt invalid.Asia Pulp & Paper moved its headquarters back to Indonesia and eventually spun off APP China in a debt-for-equity swap. It agreed to repayment of $7 billion in debt over the next 10 years, covering the debts of its Indonesia subsidiaries. By 2010, Asia Pulp & Paper was operating five of the top paper mill companies in Indonesia, including Indah Kiat, Lontar Papyrus, Pindo Deli, Tjiwi Kimia, and Ekamas Fortuna. Its principal operations were in Indonesia and China with Indonesia producing 13 million tonnes of paper and China producing 6.4 million tons on an annual basis. The same year it hired former Greenpeace activist Patrick Moore who authored a report that describes APP as not responsible for deforestation in Indonesia.