By Philip Walzer
The Virginian-Pilot
© April 11, 2010
ISLE OF WIGHT COUNTY
The uncoated truth, analysts say, is this: Demand for uncoated freesheet paper, the main product at the International Paper mill outside Franklin, has sunk to the floor, thanks to the economic slump and the advent of technology.
Even after the recovery, the outlook is blurry.
So “you’ve got to look carefully at where your assets are sprinkled across the country and determine how to best serve the majority of your customers, minimizing shipping distances and maintaining the lowest-cost facilities,” said Steve Chercover, senior research analyst for D.A. Davidson & Co. in Portland, Ore.
“It’s not an indictment or statement about that particular plant in Franklin,” he said. “It’s just how Franklin stacks up against other facilities.”
For the leaders of International Paper, it didn’t stack up high enough.
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