RICHMOND, BC, Dec. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – Catalyst Paper announced that it has
accepted, subject to US Court approval, a binding bid from an
acquisition vehicle organized by Hackman Capital and its affiliates to
purchase the assets of the closed Snowflake facility and the shares of
Apache Railway for US$13,460,000 and other non-monetary consideration.
The buyer intends to continue to operate the Apache Railway as a going
concern, and the transaction is supported by the Town of Snowflake and
various local interests.

“We are pleased that this transaction has progressed efficiently and
that the community’s interests have been considered through the process
and in the successful bid,” said President and Chief Executive Officer
Kevin J. Clarke. “While paper manufacturing is part of Snowflake’s
past, this transaction puts the asset on a path to a new future that
can continue to bring value to the region.”

The winning bid was made at the auction held on December 17, 2012 under
the US Court-approved sale and investor solicitation procedures. The
sale is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2013 and is
subject to various closing conditions. A hearing in the US Court is
scheduled for December 19, 2012 to consider approval of the sale.

Catalyst Paper manufactures diverse specialty mechanical printing
papers, newsprint and pulp. Its customers include retailers, publishers
and commercial printers in North America, Latin America, the Pacific
Rim and Europe. With three mills, located in British Columbia, Catalyst
has a combined annual production capacity of 1.5 million tonnes. The
company is headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada and is
ranked by Corporate Knights magazine as one of the 50 Best Corporate
Citizens in Canada.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain matters set forth in this news release are forward-looking.
These forward-looking statements reflect management’s current views and
are based on certain assumptions including assumptions as to future
operating conditions and courses of action, economic conditions and
other factors management believes are appropriate. Such forward looking
statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual
results to differ materially from those contained in these statements,
including the possibility that the required court approval for the sale
will not be obtained or the other conditions to the completion of the
sale will not be fulfilled, and those risks and uncertainties
identified under the heading “Risks and Uncertainties” in Catalyst’s
management’s discussion and analysis contained in Catalyst’s annual
report for the year ended December 31, 2011 and report for the third
quarter of 2012, which are available at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE Catalyst Paper Corporation