A paper mill in Maine is running again thanks to China’s Nine Dragons, but the future’s uncertain.
When we came across news of a Maine paper factory in the midst of revival under the ownership of a Chinese company, we couldn’t help but hear echoes of the Oscar-nominated documentary American Factory.
Just as with the glass factory in Moraine, Ohio, that was featured in American Factory, the paper mill of Rumford, Maine, has played a critical role in sponsoring the growth of the town around it. And, when Rumford’s mill closed in 2015, roughly 200 jobs were eliminated, shattering the community.
In the wake of the closure, the New York Times reports that “human chaos” embroiled Rumford as the loss of manufacturing jobs does in so many communities.
In comes ND Paper Company, a United States-based subsidiary of the Chinese company Nine Dragons (Holding) Ltd.
In 2019, ND Paper purchased Rumford’s mill to funnel paper pulp into Nine Dragons’ production of corrugated board in China. Since then, ND Paper Company has become the region’s largest employer with 650 employees.
Unquestionably, the restoration of the vital manufacturing jobs that Rumford’s mill supported can only be good news. But there are red flags.
In addition to former and current employees who are thrilled to see the mill running once more, there are some who fear that this current success will be short-lived as Nine Dragons may follow the pattern set by so many Chinese companies before it and ultimately work to undermine the longevity of the mill for the sake of Chinese industry.
In the case of Moraine’s glass factory, which came under the ownership of Chinese company Fuyao, as the factory transitioned to new ownership, employees were increasingly put at risk for the sake of efficiency. Critical safety regulations were disregarded, and worker rights were flouted.
And yet, Fuyao has continued to invest in the region and to create new jobs. This January, the company announced it plans to add 100 jobs at its Moraine facility and invest $46 million in new equipment there.
In Rumford, townspeople are mindful of the uncertain future that looms ahead of them.
As Derek King, a local real estate developer, said in the New York Times article:
“I think [Nine Dragons is] ripping us off, and I think they know it, and it bothers me.”
A former representative for the United Steelworkers Local 80 union, which discontinued representing workers at Rumford's mill following ND Paper's purchase of it, Duane Lugdon, is conflicted in observing the return of jobs to a previously devastated community.
“I feel a little hypocritical at times for being excited that they’re here,” he said. “At times I almost feel like the community, the state, is prostituting itself to get 130 good jobs in here.”
We so hope that Rumford’s mill keeps running, and the community continues to see the benefit of the important jobs that the mill offers. But, given the lessons we've learned from cases like the one presented in American Factory, it looks like trouble's on the horizon for the hardworking men and women who are investing their hope into Nine Dragons' endeavor.