It was the first thermomechanical pulp mill in South Korea, sourcing its fiber from domestic red pine.

[1] Cheongwon Mill was established by Shin Ho Paper, with construction starting in March 1994.

[1] Shin Ho was struck hard by the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

[1] Meanwhile, Hansol entered negotiations with Norske Skog and the Canadian pulp and paper company Abitibi Consolidated to merge their Asian mills and sales efforts under a common ownership.

Norske Skog, which had sold all non-core assets to specialize in newsprint and magazine paper, was especially hard hit by the Great Recession.

[1] Norske Skog Korea was sold for 830 million United States dollars, of which $620 was paid for in cash and the remained through the assumption of inherent debt.