Wausau Paper Corp. said after markets closed Monday that it incurred a $40.1 million after-tax impairment charge related to the sale of its former paper segment, which drove a net loss of $54.8 million in the fiscal second quarter.
 
The Mosinee-based manufacturer of commercial tissue and paper towel products said second-quarter results compared with a net loss of $1.3 million in the same period a year ago. The loss per share was $1.11, up from 3 cents a year ago.
 
Wausau Paper also incurred charges related to a Minnesota plant closure and other one-time costs. Excluding those and other costs, as well as the results of discontinued operations, the company reported an adjusted net loss of $2.4 million, or 5 cents per share, compared with net income of $2.7 million, or 5 cents per share, the year before.
 
During the second quarter, Wausau Paper completed the sale of its specialty paper business, including plants in Rhinelander and Mosinee, for net proceeds of $105 million. The company used proceeds to pay off the $67 million balance on its revolving credit facility.
 
Henry Newell, president and CEO, said the company expects to see 6 percent case shipment growth in its remaining tissue business by the fourth quarter of 2013.
 
"Completing the sale of the specialty paper business represents significant progress on our strategic repositioning efforts as a company focused on tissue," Newell said in a press release. "We launched a new family of towel and tissue products in the second quarter and will introduce a range of new Atmos-based product additions over the coming quarters."
 
Atmos is a tissue production technology that requires less energy and raw material than previous production systems.