Sonoco Products Company has committed $40m over two years to upgrade and expand its paperboard manufacturing facility in Richmond, Virginia, US.
The investment aims to increase the site’s annual volume by approximately 9,000 tonnes (t) while raising operational efficiency, technical processing capabilities, and finished product standards.
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Within Sonoco’s integrated uncoated recycled paperboard (URB) network, the Richmond plant functions as a key supply node.
The facility manufactures paperboard destined for the group’s paper can packaging, as well as lightweight tan bending chip (TBC) grades supplied to external buyers across multiple sectors.
On-site works are scheduled to begin in early 2027 and will proceed in two separate stages.
The opening stage will target sheet formation, profile control, density, and cleanliness, alongside broader manufacturing capability expansions.
A secondary stage is scheduled to conclude by the end of 2028 and will direct funding into pulping operations, water systems, automation, and facilities for workforce welfare.
Contractors will stage the engineering works to minimise operational downtime, ensuring the facility safely maintains its current 105,000t baseline output while systematically scaling toward its new 120,000t capacity goal.
Sonoco URB business unit in North America runs ten mills, housing 16 paper machines throughout the US and Canada, generating an aggregate volume of approximately 1.2 million tonnes of heavyweight and lightweight TBC paperboard a year for diverse packaging lines and downstream sectors.
Sonoco president and CEO Howard Coker said: “Richmond has long played an important role in supporting our consumer and industrial packaging businesses with quality paperboard that delivers value to our customers.
“This investment demonstrates our commitment to strengthening Sonoco’s paperboard system through targeted, high-return projects that enhance efficiency, improve product performance and position us to meet growing customer demand. By adding state-of-the-art capabilities, we will further improve the quality and consistency of our products while increasing capacity that supports long-term growth.”
