Chinese Company Led by UVA Darden Graduate Invests $2 Billion and Will Create 2,000 Jobs in Virginia

19 June 2014

By Matt Charles


Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe announced yesterday the largest Chinese economic development investment and job creation project in the history of the Commonwealth — $2 billion and 2,000 jobs.

Shandong Tranlin Paper Co. Ltd., a world-leading pulp and paper company, will base this economic development project at an 850-acre campus located at the James River Industrial Center in Chesterfield County, Virginia. The site borders Richmond, Virginia.

The project will bring jobs to Virginia and will have direct and indirect economic impacts through additional revenue for farmers and investment back into the community through higher paying jobs at Tranlin. The economic benefit to farmers in the region could exceed $50 million annually upon completion of the project.

Jerry Zhiyuan Peng, chair and CEO of Tranlin, has roots in Virginia. He is a 2003 alumnus of the University of Virginia Darden School of Business and member of the Darden School Foundation Board of Trustees.

“The training at Darden and the ongoing learning I received from the School over the years not only prepared me for the challenges during my years in finance and banking, but also equipped me with the broader perspective to take on a rather entrepreneurial CEO role in this new endeavor,” said Peng. “There is much I learned that is constantly put into play here — strategy, branding, sustainability and certain operational insights. Even more important are building the trust, bridging the gaps and resolving the problems on daily basis.”

Tranlin developed an innovative technology to make paper, using agricultural residuals, such as corn and grain byproducts normally left in farm fields after harvest. This process will allow for preservation of farmland and further economic return. The harvest of straw in the spring and corn stalks in the fall for use by Tranlin will offer two new cash crops for Virginia producers, as they were previously waste that did not act as a revenue stream.

The company has further harnessed this environmentally sustainable technology to pioneer a method that transforms the waste byproducts from the paper-making process into organic fertilizer. From an ecological perspective, Tranlin prides itself on a process that leads to an environmentally friendly emission, resulting in the discharge of quality, clean water.

Peng commented, “The core of the Tranlin model and history can be found in three words that I believe are the future of the Chinese economy and business: innovation, sustainability and entrepreneurship.”

Recognizing Darden’s talented student body and alumni, Tranlin hired Darden alumnus Yue Zhu (MBA ’14) and has brought on three of the School’s rising Second Year students as summer interns.

“Jerry offered me the opportunity to join Tranlin, which would not have happened if I had not come to Darden,” said Zhu. “The project is extremely exciting because it represents an increasingly popular trend of outbound investment led by Chinese companies and also a unique chance to apply the general management skills learned at Darden from day one. It is amazing to work in a business that would benefit all the stakeholders, especially consumers and farmers. This will be a historic deal, and I am ecstatic to be part of it.”

Peng noted that Tranlin is headquartered in Shandong, China, home of Confucius — a philosopher whose thought shapes much of Chinese culture. Peng added that it was such a delightful coincidence that Tranlin would have its first overseas investment in Virginia, home of Thomas Jefferson — the UVA founder and author of the Declaration of Independence whose ideas permeate U.S. culture and history.

Governor McAuliffe said, “Advanced manufacturing jobs are the heart of a strong and growing 21st century economy, and this investment symbolizes the economic recovery taking place across the nation, and will be transformational for the economy of Chesterfield County and the surrounding region. The opportunity to welcome a leading, global company’s first U.S. manufacturing operation and simultaneously strengthen Virginia’s relationship with China is invaluable.”

About the University of Virginia Darden School of Business

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business prepares responsible global leaders through unparalleled transformational learning experiences. Darden’s graduate degree programs (MBA, MSBA and Ph.D.) and Executive Education & Lifelong Learning programs offered by the Darden School Foundation set the stage for a lifetime of career advancement and impact. Darden’s top-ranked faculty, renowned for teaching excellence, inspires and shapes modern business leadership worldwide through research, thought leadership and business publishing. Darden has Grounds in Charlottesville, Virginia, and the Washington, D.C., area and a global community that includes 18,000 alumni in 90 countries. Darden was established in 1955 at the University of Virginia, a top public university founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 in Charlottesville, Virginia.

 

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Darden School of Business
University of Virginia
MitchellM@darden.virginia.edu