The restructuring events database contains factsheets with data on large-scale restructuring events reported in the principal national media and company websites in each EU Member State. This database was created in 2002.
Manufacturing Manufacture Of Wood And Paper Materials Manufacture Of Paper And Paper Products 17.12 - Manufacture of paper and paperboard
350 jobs Number of planned job losses
Announcement Date
18 October 2006
Employment effect (start)
1 January 2007
Foreseen end date
31 January 2007
Description
A paper mill that has operated in Kent since 1876 is on the verge of closure, its owners have said. Finnish firm M-real said it was planning to close the Sittingbourne Mill and would be consulting with unions and staff.
The company, which took over the mill in 1999, employs 350 people there. A spokesman said the rising costs of energy and raw material in the UK and lower selling prices across Europe had made the site unprofitable.
The company said the mill would continue operating as normal during the consultation period, which is set to last until the end of January 2007.
Nick Carter, mill manager, said: 'The mill operation here at Sittingbourne has been undergoing significant losses in the past few years and major losses year-by-year on a month-by-month basis.'
The manufacturing union Amicus said its members were informed of the planned closure of the paper and packaging plant without any notice.
Swale Borough Council said it was "bad news".
Mark Bilsborough, the council's chief executive, said: 'We are working closely with M-real to look for ways of softening the blow.'
Sources
18 October 2006: BBC Website
Citation
Eurofound (2006), M-real, Closure in United Kingdom, factsheet number 64278, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/64278.
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