Following its emergence from bankruptcy, Verso Corp. has announced its new senior management team, which includes a graduate of Old Town High School and Maine Maritime Academy.

Adam St. John, who holds an engineering degree from Maine Maritime Academy, was promoted to senior vice president of manufacturing for the paper company. A 24-year paper industry veteran, St. John has worked at Verso for the past 10 years, most recently serving as regional vice president of manufacturing with responsibility for the company’s largest paper mills, according to a release from Verso.

St. John spent 13 years with Georgia Pacific, before joining Verso in May of 2006 as a maintenance superintendent. He was the paper business unit manager at Verso’s mill in Bucksport in 2008 and then an operations manager at the Androscoggin Mill in Jay. By 2011, he was a mill manager at Quinnesec, Michigan, according to the company.

Verso sold off its Bucksport mill in 2014, but maintains the mill in Jay where 560 people work. It filed for bankruptcy in January to eliminate $2.4 billion in debt, emerging with a new plan in July.

The Memphis-based company also announced Wednesday that David J. Paterson will retire as the chairman of the board and chief executive officer on Aug. 31.

The company’s board is looking for a new CEO. In the interim, a team of executives, including St. John, will lead the company.

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As part of the changes, Robert M. Amen, the current lead independent director of Verso, will become the chairman of the board upon Paterson’s retirement.

“I am deeply honored to have had the opportunity to lead Verso over the last four years, and I am extremely proud of what our team has accomplished together in the face of significant challenges,” Paterson said in the release. “Now that Verso has completed its restructuring and is positioned for a more financially stable and sustainable future, I retire with the confidence that our senior leadership team, along with the board of directors, will take full advantage of every opportunity to make Verso a resounding success. I want to thank all of our employees for their hard work, dedication and support during my time at Verso, and I wish them all the best.”

Joining St. John on the temporary executive team are Allen J. Campbell, senior vice president and chief financial officer; Michael A. Weinhold, senior vice president of sales, marketing and product development; and Peter H. Kesser, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary.

The team will have the duties and responsibilities associated with the CEO position and will report directly to Verso’s board of directors and its newly formed executive committee consisting of Amen and fellow directors Eugene I. Davis and Jay Shuster.


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