NC wants grant money back from owner of Canton paper mill

RALEIGH, N.C. (WSPA) – North Carolina’s attorney general announced a lawsuit Thursday demanding Pactiv Evergreen repay $12 million in grant money following the closure of their Canton paper mill.

The lawsuit claims that Pactiv Evergreen breached their 2014 grant agreement with the North Carolina Department of Commerce.

“Taxpayers in North Carolina invested in Pactiv Evergreen to bolster our state’s economy,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “We held up our end of the bargain, and we cannot let Pactiv cut and run away with our state’s money.”

The attorney general said the grant agreement provided Pactiv Evergreen with $12 million in economic development incentives in exchange for a commitment to maintain operations, and at least 800 jobs, at the Canton mill through December 31, 2024.

“AG Stein and his team are doing exactly what they said they would do when the mill closed, hold the company accountable,” said Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers. “We teach our children that when you make promises, you keep those promises. Pactiv Evergreen took $12 million from the State in exchange for a promise to keep the mill open; a promise they did not keep. We fully support the DOJ’s efforts to recover this money and hold Pactiv accountable to the taxpayers of North Carolina.”

The mill closed in May 2023 , leaving more than 1,000 people without a job in Haywood County.

Pactiv Evergreen was the largest private employer in the county at the time of the closure.

The company has reportedly signed a letter of intent to sell the shuttered plant to Spirtas Worldwide, a Missouri-based company specializing in industrial and commercial demolition, remediation, and redevelopment.

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