The news comes as the paper and corrugated giant posted a lower-than-expected profit last week due to weak sales of consumer packaging in North America and Asia.
International Paper said growth will be driven by cost savings projects and initiatives in Brazil, Russia, China and North America and the entry into the corrugated packaging market in Brazil through a JV 75% stake costing $470m.
"The company generated excellent cash flow in the third quarter, despite the backdrop of slow global economic growth," said John Faraci, chairman and chief executive. "Looking ahead to next year, many of our key strategic projects will be ramping up around the globe."
Faraci added: "This, along with our earnings trajectory in North America Industrial Packaging, will allow us to deliver significant progress on our earnings and cash flow runway as we head into 2013."
Profit plunge
The company posted net earnings of $237m, or 54 cents per share, compared with $468m, or $1.08 per share, a year earlier.
Excluding one-time items, IP earned 75 cents per share. By that measure, analysts on average expected 77 cents, according to Thomson Reuters.
Faraci told reporters that the company is having a "terrific year" in Russia and Eastern Europe, and volumes are improving in Brazil, Faraci said. However, China's economy in slowing and consumer demand is tepid in North America, he said.
"In China it feels like 2 to 3% GDP growth, not 7%," Faraci said. "Demand feels like it's more or less sideways in North America, where it's not getting much better, and not getting much worse."
However, he told reporters that International Paper was positioned to do significantly better in 2013 than 2012.