Chinese Company To Build New Pulp Mill In U.S.

A new full-scale pulp and paper mill is coming to the U.S. South—the first one in more than 30 years.

Paper manufacturer Shandong Sun Paper Industry of China said it will build a new pulp mill that will cost between $1 billion and $1.3 billion in south Arkansas at Arkadelphia.

South Arkansas is known for its abundant timberlands and the new mill is expected to have an annual economic impact of up to $100 million on the forest industry in that region. Construction of the mill is expected to begin in the first half of 2017 with production tentatively set for late 2019.  The mill will be Sun Paper’s first plant in North America.

The last “greenfield” pulp and paper mill to be built in the Southern U.S. was in 1985 at Eastover, S.C., by Union Camp Corporation at a cost of around $600 million. International Paper, which purchased Union Camp in 1999, continues to operate the pulp mill and two paper machines at the Eastover facility.

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