To the Shareholders of Stora Enso Oyj

We have audited the accounting records, the financial statements and the administration of Stora Enso Oyj for the year ended December 31, 2004. The financial statements prepared by the Board of Directors and the Chief Executive Officer include the report of the Board of Directors, consolidated financial statements of the Stora Enso Group prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, and parent company financial statements prepared in accordance with prevailing rules and regulations in Finland. Based on our audit, we express an opinion on these financial statements and on the parent company’s administration.

We conducted our audit in accordance with Finnish Standards on Auditing. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance as to whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and the significant estimates made by the management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. The purpose of our audit of the administration has been to ensure that the members of the Board of Directors and the Chief Executive Officer have legally complied with the rules of the Finnish Companies’ Act.

In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards give a true and fair view of the consolidated result of operations, as well as of the financial position of the Stora Enso Group. The consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with prevailing rules and regulations in Finland and can be adopted.

The parent company’s financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the Finnish Accounting Act and other rules and regulations governing the preparation of the financial statements. The parent company financial statements give a true and a fair view, as defined in the Accounting Act, of the Company’s result of operations and financial position. The parent company’s financial statements can be adopted and the members of the Board of Directors and the Chief Executive Officer of the parent company discharged from liability for the period audited by us. The proposal of the Board of Directors regarding the distributable funds is in compliance with the Finnish Companies Act.

Helsinki, 28 February, 2005

PricewaterhouseCoopers Oy

Authorised Public Accountants

Eero Suomela

Authorised Public Accountant