WestRock Company announces that it is reconfiguring its North Charleston, SC, paper mill to improve the mill鈥檚 operating efficiency and long-term competitiveness. As part of the reconfiguration, WestRock will permanently shut down one of the mill鈥檚 three paper machines and related physical infrastructure, eliminating approximately 288,000 tons of linerboard capacity. The reconfigured mill鈥檚 production capacity will total approximately 605,000 tons per year, consisting of three grades: kraft linerboard; KraftPak, an unbleached folding carton kraft paper; and DuraSorb, a saturating kraft paper used for decorative laminate and industrial end uses.
鈥淭he actions that we are taking at our North Charleston mill will substantially improve the long-term competitiveness of the mill by reducing our on-going operating costs and capital needs, and focusing more than half of the mill鈥檚 production on the high-value, differentiated DuraSorb and KraftPak products,鈥� said Steve Voorhees, chief executive officer of WestRock. 鈥淩educing the production of linerboard at this mill will help balance our supply with customer demand across our system.鈥�
The company anticipates that the reconfiguration will increase WestRock鈥檚 annual EBITDA by approximately $40 million, primarily due to the reduction in operating costs from the shutdown of the paper machine and its associated infrastructure. This reconfiguration includes an anticipated workforce reduction of approximately 260 positions at this mill over a five-month period, starting in January 2020. 鈥淲e understand that this reconfiguration will impact our employees, their families and the community,鈥� continued Voorhees. 鈥淥ur teams are working to provide support and resources to our employees and their families as we move forward.鈥�