Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. is shutting down its Lexington plant, resulting in the loss of about 100 jobs, a spokesman said yesterday.
The company sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January and said earlier this month that its fourth-quarter results will include a $2.76 billion accounting charge to reflect the reduced value of intangible assets. The company said it expected a net loss of $2.84 billion for the fourth quarter.
Mike Mullin, the company's director of media relations and public affairs, said that the closing of the Lexington plant on Albemarle Street is part of the company's continuing efforts to remain competitive.
"The transformation has included streamlining company operations in order to create efficiencies while providing quality products and services to our customers," Mullin said.
Smurfit-Stone is the country's largest producer of cardboard box materials and employs nearly 22,000 people at about 150 facilities in North America and Asia.
Smurfit-Stone laid off about 16 people in Lexington last month. They are part of the total number of people who will lose their jobs when the plant closes, Mullin said.
The company will shut down the plant in the second quarter of this year, between April and June, Mullin said. The move affects 14 salaried employees and 85 hourly employees, he said.
Mayor John Walser had not heard about the plant's closing when reached yesterday afternoon.
"I'm awfully sorry to hear that," he said. "They've been here a long time."
Lexington has had its share of plant closings over the past few years, including major furniture plants.
"This is another shoe dropping," Walser said. "I just hope there aren't any more shoes that will drop."
■ Michael Hewlett can be reached at 727-7326 or at mhewlett@wsjournal.com.
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