April 5th, 2021 by WCBC Radio

The shuttered Luke Mill is back in the news following the announcement of a settlement with Verso Luke and its parent company, Verso Corporation, resolving a dispute regarding seepages into the Potomac River near the facility. Efforts by a private firm to purchase the mill and its woodyard are continuing but to date no agreement has been finalized. The firm, known as Whiskey River, would establish a lumber related business at the mill, which was closed by Verso Corporation in May of 2019.  Estimates for the new venture are in the neighborhood of 200 jobs created. In addition to the jobs on site, the plant is expected to reinvigorate the logging industry in the region, which took a major hit when the mill closed. At least part of the business would involve manufacturing wood chips, which would be marketed internationally, and, possibly, domestically. The two paper machines have been sold to Turkish interests. County officials have said very little publicly about the potential transaction, although administrator Jason Bennett, during a recent budget meeting, seemed to confirm that negotiations are ongoing…