This story will be updated.
The Jay Mill in Androscoggin County will be shut down in 2023, nearly three years after the paper mill suffered serious losses when a pulp digester exploded.
Approximately 230 people will be laid off as a result of the closure in the first quarter of next year. The mill has been battling a number of financial and business challenges after the April 2020 explosion, according to Alan Ulman, a spokesperson for mill owner Pixelle Specialty Solutions.
Pixelle President and CEO Timothy R. Hess noted that the mill would be unable to continue under the current business model and make a profit.
Gov. Janet Mills has directed the Department of Labor to send a Rapid Response Team to help support the mill workers and provide resources to them and their families. She said in a statement that Pixelle will offer all employees health care benefits and severance pay following the end of their employment in 2023.
“My administration will continue to do all we can to support Maine’s forest products industry and the thousands of jobs it provides to people across Maine,” Mills said.
