Reynolds To Split Into Several Pieces

Reynolds Metals will break itself into pieces and either sell its consumer packaging and aluminum can businesses to another company or trade their stocks as separate from the parent firm, according to Reynolds Chairman Jeremiah J. Sheehan.

“Keeping all of these businesses is not an option,” Sheehan said Wednesday at a meeting of aluminum industry analysts. “Reynolds plans to optimize their value one way or another.”

Sheehan said the sales or spin-offs, planned by the end of this year, could include all or part of the operations of the Richmond, Va.-based company. He declined to comment about a Wednesday report in The Wall Street Journal that said Reynolds was close to selling its aluminum can business.

Reynolds has already sold a number of plants and has begun cutting jobs.

Sheehan said about one-third of the 1,800 corporate, research and engineering jobs in the Richmond area have been eliminated beginning next year.