PORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Willamette Industries, Inc.
(NYSE: WLL) began operation of its Port Wentworth, Ga., hardwood pulp mill on
Sept. 5. The mill, which had been closed nearly two years, was purchased by
Willamette from Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation in May of this year.
According to Jim Myers, Willamette's vice president of pulp and white
paper mills, the mill employs approximately 150 people and is running 24 hours
a day, seven days a week. Pulp from the mill is sold to domestic and export
markets.
"Employees at the Port Wentworth mill and at several of the company's
other mills have done a great job of getting the mill up and running in a
short period of time," says Duane McDougall, Willamette's president and
chief executive officer.
Support from the community and local officials also ensured a successful
start-up. "We received tremendous support from the Savannah Economic
Development Authority, the Georgia Department of Labor, the city of Savannah,
Georgia Quick Start, and others," says Charlie Floyd, mill manager. "With
their help, we were able to create jobs that were lost when the mill closed in
1998 and achieve a safe and successful start-up."
Willamette Industries is a vertically integrated, Fortune 500 forest
products company with more than 100 manufacturing facilities in the
United States, Mexico, France and Ireland. Willamette owns approximately
1.7 million acres of forest land in the United States and manages it
sustainably according to the principles of the American Forest & Paper
Association's Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI)SM program.
Forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the
safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties
and actual results could differ materially from those projected. Such risks
and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the effect of general
economic conditions; the level of new housing starts and remodeling activity;
the availability and terms of financing for construction; competitive factors,
including pricing pressures; the cost and availability of wood fiber; the
effect of natural disasters on the Company's timberlands; construction delays;
risk of nonperformance by third parties; and the impact of environmental
regulations and other costs associated with complying with such regulations.
Please refer to Willamette Industries' Securities and Exchange Commission
filings for further information.
SOURCE Willamette Industries, Inc.
 back to top
Related links:
http://www.wii.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/971763.html or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 971763
CONTACT:
Media, Cathy Dunn, 503-273-5642, or Analysts,
E. Jane Sinnema, 503-721-8642, both for Willamette Industries,
Inc.
|
