Video: Tronox Sodium Chlorate Plant In Hamilton To Close

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(PRESS RELEASE)

Tronox Hamilton, Sodium Chlorate Plant Announcement

The Tronox sodium chlorate plant in Hamilton, Mississippi will cease production in late November, 2015.  This action is the result of a steep decline in global demand for sodium chlorate, which is used as an alternative to chlorine as a whitener for paper and pulp products.

Closing the Sodium Chlorate plant is a difficult decision for Tronox; one that was made after a full consideration of alternatives.  In light the low near- and long-term market demand for the product, and the prohibitive costs to upgrade the facility, the company concluded that this transition is the only viable option.

We anticipate that approximately 70 jobs will be eliminated when the plant closes in late November 2015, and of that number, approximately 30 will be offered comparable positions at our TiO₂ plant in Hamilton.

Colleagues leaving Tronox as a result of this decision will be offered severance, extended benefits, and outplacement services.

We thank our colleagues at the plant for their dedication and decades of service to the company and our customers.  By making this announcement several months in advance of the closing of the plant, our goal is to lessen its impact on affected colleagues and the surrounding community.

Since October 2013, Tronox has supplied almost its entire finished inventory of sodium chlorate – 130,000 metric tons per annum – to ERCO Worldwide.  Under the terms of the 2013 agreement ERCO assumed all of Tronox’s existing customer contracts.

In April, ERCO notified Tronox that it will terminate its agreement with Tronox after the 2015 production cycle.

Production at the Sodium Chlorate plant will continue into the fourth quarter of this year. During this period, we will maintain our focus on safe and sustainable operations and our commitment to manufacturing a high-quality product.