A US-based unit of Italian tissue paper producer Sofidel won an auction to purchase the assets of bankrupt competitor Royal Paper, increasing its original bid up to a final price of $180 million.

Sofidel America Corp., which had negotiated a sale floor price at $126 million, beat out Kimberly-Clark Corp. at the auction, debtor Royal Interco LLC said in a May 16 notice to the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. Kimberly-Clark will serve as the back-up bidder until the Chapter 11 sale to Sofidel closes, it said.

Royal Paper, a Phoenix-based tissue paper producer for the retail and away-from-home market, filed for bankruptcy and reportedly agreed to a deal to sell its business last month.

The company filed for Chapter 11 protection April 8 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, listing assets and liabilities each between $100 million and $500 million in its petition.