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Operations & Footprint 21 Sep 2026

DS Smith proposes closing Kemsley PM4 and spending USD 26.4m (GBP 20m) on PM6 upgrade

DS Smith, owned by International Paper, has proposed closing paper machine PM4 at its Kemsley mill in Kent while spending about USD 26.4m (GBP 20m) to modernise paper machine PM6. PM4 produces about 250,000 tonnes a year of containerboard between 125 and 210 gsm, and its closure would cut the number of roles at the site, with no redundancy figure confirmed and consultation with employees and union representatives still to come. The PM6 upgrade is intended to raise output and add new grades at the mill, which has capacity of about 830,000 tonnes a year and is Europe's second-largest.

Why this mattersThe move reallocates capacity within one of Europe's largest recovered-fibre mills, showing containerboard producers concentrating output on fewer, upgraded lines rather than adding capacity.

  • DS Smith proposes closing paper machine PM4 at Kemsley mill, Kent, which produces about 250,000 tonnes a year at 125 to 210 gsm.
  • DS Smith plans to spend about USD 26.4m (GBP 20m) to modernise paper machine PM6.
  • Kemsley, built in 1924, has annual capacity of about 830,000 tonnes and is Europe's second-largest paper mill.
  • Closing PM4 would reduce the number of roles at the site; no redundancy figure has been confirmed.
  • Two years earlier DS Smith announced USD 63.5m (GBP 48m) for a new fibre-preparation line at Kemsley.
  • DS Smith is owned by International Paper.
International Paper
Sources sustainable-paper-pulp.com
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Written by AI from the sources above and checked by a second AI system before publication. No human wrote or edited this story. How it is made.

Updates

  • 2026-09-25 · Edited before publication: Conversions are correct but the order is inverted in the summary and bullets; house style puts USD first with the original in brackets. The second GBP 48m figure carried no conversion. Corrected, and the PM4 closure kept ahead of the investment in the bullet order.
  • 2026-09-25 · Edited before publication: Headline stated the closure as decided; the source describes a proposal subject to consultation. Materiality raised to 4: removal of a 250,000 t/y containerboard machine at Europe's second-largest paper mill is material to International Paper and to European containerboard supply. GBP conversions correct at 1.3220.