Domtar says Kingsport conversion project on track

Domtar, a Fort Mill, South Carolina-based manufacturer of communication, specialty and packaging papers, has announced its first 100-percent-recycled packaging facility in Kingsport, Tennessee, is on track and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

In a news release announcing the dedication of a bridge to former Kingsport Mill Manager Marty Barfield, Domtar also provided an update on the status of the conversion of its uncoated freesheet printing and writing paper machine.

The company says supply chain issues threatened to delay the conversion schedule, but Domtar rented its own large ocean freighter to take 43 dryer cans and other equipment from China to the Port of Charleston in South Carolina, keeping the project on track.

"This project has given us an opportunity to demonstrate each of Domtar's core values: innovation, agility and caring," says Charlie Floyd, vice president of packaging capital at Domtar. "There's more to come as we move toward completion and production."

Domtar announced the conversion in August 2020 and invested $350 million into the project. The converted Kingsport machine will produce approximately 600,000 tons per year of recycled-content containerboard and will consume 660,000 tons per year of old corrugated containers and mixed paper as raw material.

In April, the facility received its first bales, containing retail boxes and other mixed paper, and they will be stored until the machine is operational.

Packaging Senior Vice President Steve Henry says, "We're building recovered paper inventory in thoughtful, measured way to prepare for our start-up later this year."