A data center is part of the redevelopment plans at the former site of the Pixelle Specialty Solutions paper mill in Chillicothe. The site will be turned into a “21st-century regional hub for advanced manufacturing, aerospace innovation, medical device production, research and development, and next-generation computing technologies” by U.S. Paper Mill, according to a news release from the Chillicothe Ross Chamber of Commerce. The campus will be developed in partnership with Amphibian Aerospace Industries, U.S. Medical Glove Company, Aligned, and U.S. Box Company. Aligned is a company that develops data centers and has two campuses in Ohio — one in Coshocton County and one in Sandusky, according to its website.

“I am pleased to report that during the past quarter Sappi delivered profits up 81% from a year ago, reduced debt by a further 17% (US$265 million) year-on-year. We also repaid US$400 million in bonds from cash reserves which will generate savings of approximately US$21 million per annum on our net interest charge. “Sappi’s third quarter is seasonally and historically its weakest quarter due to the slow-down in business activity during the Northern Hemisphere summer holiday period and Sappi’s choice to use this quarter to undertake major annual maintenance shuts. The past quarter’s earnings (EBITDA ex special items) at US$155 million where almost flat on a year ago. Higher volumes were offset by higher raw material prices and a stronger Rand/Dollar exchange rate.

Sappi Europe today announced the initiation of a consultation process at its Kirkniemi Mill in Finland as part of a proposed asset restructure. This step is being taken in response to a structural decline in demand across Europe and sustained financial challenges. The proposed changes are intended to ensure long term competitiveness in the Graphic Paper Market and align production capacity with changing market dynamics and customer needs. Sappi Europe has today announced the potential closure of Paper Machine 2 at its Kirkniemi Mill in Lohja, Finland. If implemented, this step would reduce the mill’s annual capacity of coated magazine paper by 175,000 tonnes. The proposed asset closure is part of Sappi’s strategy to align capacity with market demand and improve operational efficiency with paper machines 1 and 3 remaining in operation. The process would be carefully managed to ensure continuity of supply with no disruption to customers. The biggest coated publication paper mill in the world, Kirkniemi Mill has a production capacity of 750,000 tons of coated paper for heatset web offset printing serving mainly the high-volume print market. A major investment to convert on-site power generation to biofuels eliminated 90% of the mill’s direct, Scope 1 greenhouse gas emissions in 2023.