Steve Garbacz, The Commercial Review County Reporter

Following in the footsteps of its Hartford City kin, International Paper's Portland plant will be permanently closing by the end of May, resulting in the loss of 31 jobs.

International Paper announced Friday that the corrugated sheet plant will shut down before the end of next month due to a worsening economic climate and the proximity of other box plants in the region.

The plant opened in 1981 and was purchased by International Paper in July 2004. The facility was churning out 36 million square feet of corrugated packaging at its peak.

"The economic recession, coupled with the addition of box plants in this region with our acquisition of Weyerhaeuser's packaging business has left us with more capacity than our customers need," said complex general manager Joseph M. Moore in a press release. "Our Portland plant is disadvantaged by a loss of volume and other area facilities are better equipped to handle the consolidation production needs."

"It's really the same situation as the Hartford City plant," said senior communication manager Amy Sawyer. "We have too much capacity in that area."

The company announced earlier in the year that the Hartford City branch would be closing around the end of March, citing over-coverage in the region as one of the main reasons for the shutdown.

"What we'll be focused on is doing whatever we can for the employees," Sawyer said of the next steps.

The company will be negotiating severance plans with the local union, United Steelworkers Local 7-0154.
-30-