UPDATE: Verso mill fire blamed on lightning strike (wausaupilotandreview.com)

Appleton Coated, a mill that shut abruptly last fall when it went into receivership, has been inching back to life, with its third machine restarted Monday (March 26) and 230 of its 600 employees recalled to work. Its improbable rebirth is coming under an equally improbable owner, used machine dealer Industrial Assets Corp. Other mills that shut in the past, like NewPage in Kimberly, are no more than a pile of rocks today. Appleton Coated, instead, is getting back on its feet.

The Sappi Saiccor mill situated in Umkomaas, KwaZulu-Natal hosted a high-level delegation from the office of the outgoing MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA), Ms Nomusa Dube-Ncube, as part of the KZN International Investment Conference today. The MEC was accompanied by the Deputy Mayor of Ethekwini, Councillor Belinda Scott and the TIKZN Chairperson, Ms Ina Cronje. This combined R7,7bn investment is aimed at increasing capacity and global competitiveness, significantly reducing the environmental footprint of the company and equipment and process upgrades and improvements. its Saiccor Mill in Umkomaas. Not only will fossil fuel CO2 emissions be halved and SO2 emissions be reduced by 37%, but water use efficiency will improve by 17% and waste to landfill reduced by a massive 48%. This all, while increasing the mills’ capacity by 110,000 tons per annum and creating additional future permanent employment for 120 people and saving the company at least R300m per annum through improved and more efficient processes.

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