International Paper is purchasing two mills Weyerhaeuser operates in Columbus.
The Memphis-based company is, in all, purchasing seven mills from Weyerhaeuser. The price is $2.2 billion.
The companies announced the deal Monday.
The Columbus facilities included in the purchase are a modified fiber mill and a cellulose fiber mill, or pulp mill.
The other Weyerhaeuser facilities being purchased by International Paper are cellulose fiber mills in Flint River Georgia; New Bern, North Carolina; Port Wentworth, Georgia; and Grande Prairie, Alberta.
The five cellulose fiber mills have a combined total capacity of 1.9 million metric tons.
The deal also includes a modified fiber mill in Poland, officials said.
Weyerhaeuser Public Affairs Manager Nancy Thompson told The Dispatch that the Columbus mills employ approximately 420 people. The seven mills included in the purchase employ a combined 1,900 workers.
Thompson said the purchase will not impact Weyerhaeuser’s other operations, such as its Mississippi-Alabama Timberlands Area Headquarters in Columbus or its lumber mills in other parts of the state.
Weyerhaeuser makes wood and fiber products. International Paper makes paper and pulp.
“This transaction delivers compelling value for Weyerhaeuser shareholders and further focuses our portfolio as we work to be the world’s premier timber, land, and forest products company,” Doyle R. Simons, the president and CEO of Weyerhaeuser, said in a news release.
“Our mills are world class producers of pulp, and the assets and people are among the finest in the industry,” Simmons added. “This transaction will position the mills to achieve their full potential as part of an industry-leading pulp and paper manufacturer.”
Lowndes County Board of Supervisors President Harry Sanders said his association with Weyerhaeuser dates back to the late 1970s, when the company first began construction a Columbus mill.
“Actually, they came here in the late 1950s, buying land and planting pine trees so that when they built their paper mill, the trees would be mature,” Sanders said. “When they started construction in the late ’70s, I was in the gas and oil business and sold them a lot of their lubricants and diesel fuel. So I’ve known the company a long time.
“They’ve been wonderful corporate citizens,” Sanders said. “They never tried to be in the limelight. They just quietly went about their business. They’re good people providing good-paying jobs and have been good citizens and good neighbors for all these years. I can’t say enough good things about Weyerhaeuser.”
An International Paper press release said the deal is expected to close sometime in the fourth quarter of this year.
“Weyerhaeuser’s pulp business has an outstanding customer base served from low-cost, well-run assets that complement our existing system and offers significant synergy opportunities,” said International Paper Chairman and CEO Mark Sutton. “This transaction will position us as the premier global supplier of fluff pulp and will enhance our ability to generate additional free cash flow. We look forward to working with the talented employees of Weyerhaeuser as we integrate our businesses and create an even stronger company.”
Dispatch reporter Slim Smith contributed to this report.
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 43 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.