Wolf Theiss advises publicly listed Oji Holdings Corporation on the acquisition of all shares in AustroCel Hallein GmbH from TowerBrook Capital Partners

Vienna, 29 September 2025 – Wolf Theiss acted as legal advisor to Oji Holdings Corporation, one of the world’s largest pulp, paper and packaging companies, on its acquisition of all shares in AustroCel Hallein GmbH, a company manufacturing and selling dissolving pulp, from TowerBrook Capital Partners.

Oji Holdings Corporation, headquartered in Japan, is one of the world’s largest pulp, paper and packaging companies. Listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the company operates across diverse forest-based business domains, including sustainable packaging, forest biomass and dissolving pulp. With a legacy spanning over 150 years, Oji is committed to nature-positive management and innovation, leveraging its expertise in forestation and paper manufacturing to deliver solutions that address global sustainability challenges.

AustroCel is one of Europe’s leading biorefinery companies, manufacturing dissolving pulp with applications in bio-based performance chemical products. It also utilises residual streams from dissolving pulp production to produce advanced biofuels. The business supplies bio-based products to a global customer base and operates a circular, zero-waste model that extracts the full value of wood. AustroCel has made significant investments in recent years, resulting in a highly profitable business model recognised by customers as a differentiated biorefining platform. In particular, AustroCel is a pioneer in the bioethanol sector, having begun commercial sales in 2021. In addition, the company’s lignin-based hydrogel granules, made from by-products of dissolving pulp, are a biodegradable solution that absorbs and subsequently releases water, significantly reducing irrigation needs and supporting farmers facing the ongoing challenges of climate change.

The Wolf Theiss team was led by Partner Sarah Wared (Corporate/M&A) and further supported by a core team that included Partner Robert Wagner, Senior Associate Vanessa Horaceck (both Competition), Partner Erik Steger (Real Estate), Partner Matthias Unterrieder (Employment), Partner Marika Lomashvili (Banking & Finance), Senior Associate Stefanie Orator-Saghy (Regulatory), Senior Associate Elisabeth Pötscher (Real Estate), Consultant Karin Spindler (Tax), Associates Julia Male, Carolina Brunnmayr, Klemens Kendler, Jonathan Gruber and Paul Samonig (all Corporate/M&A), Senior Associate Philipp Richter (Banking & Finance), Senior Associate Sarah Haubmann and Associate Catherine Mertzanopoulos (both Employment), Counsel Paulina Pomorski, Associate Lisa Bernsteiner (both IP/IT), Counsel Theresia Welser and Associate Lena Tautscher (both Litigation).