A dramatic turn of events! Fibre Excellence's management has withdrawn its takeover bid. The paper group has decided to step aside to make way for a new investor, in the hope of securing the future of the group, which is under court-supervised restructuring, and its 700 employees .
Due to a lack of candidates, the manufacturer of pulp for printing and writing paper, hygiene products, and packaging had filed on June 1 a case filed with the Toulouse Commercial Court covering all of the group's operations, namely the pulp mills in Tarascon in the Bouches-du-Rhône department and in Saint-Gaudens in the Haute-Garonne department, the stationery store at the Chapelle Darblay stop in Grand-Couronne, Seine-Maritime, and the forestry companies Sebso and Enviroforesterie.
Today, the situation has changed. A few days ago, we learned that a A new player described as "renowned investor" The management was interested in acquiring the group . According to several sources familiar with the matter cited by AFP, the individual in question is financier and investment banker Matthieu Pigasse, who submitted a letter of intent in his personal capacity.
His arrival was taken seriously enough to prompt the court to postpone consideration of the case until July 6. At the June 17 hearing, Fibre Excellence had already indicated that the involvement of this new investor made it possible to consider either strengthening the management-led takeover plan or submitting a new offer.
Five days later, management therefore decided to withdraw its own proposal. In a press release, the paper manufacturer explained that this move was in response to the concerns expressed by the government and several stakeholders regarding the need for a new governance structure.
"I have therefore chosen to act responsibly in order to enable the implementation of a new governance structure requested by our public and union partners, and thereby facilitate the development of a sustainable solution for our group, says Jean-François Guillot , President of Fibre Excellence. "Convinced of the importance of Fibre Excellence to France's industrial sovereignty, the management team and I will continue to support any solution that helps save jobs and ensure the long-term viability of the paper and forestry businesses."
The executive also points out that the work carried out since the start of the conciliation proceedings in November 2025 has led to progress on several issues deemed essential to the group's future, "thereby paving the way for concrete solutions to ensure the group's continued operations, sustainability, and growth" .
