The decision to close the Inverurie mill has been attacked by Unite, which claims the paper giant had always planned to move production abroad, despite a three-month consultation process with staff and interest from Norweigan pellet-maker Biowood Norway.

Tony Burke, Unite assistant general secretary, said the union has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to find a potential purchaser.

"IP has failed to reach agreement and we believe that it was its policy all along to close the site and relocate paper production from Scotland to Brazil, Poland and Russia," he said.

However, a spokesman for IP said the process had been "a full and transparent consultation, with the outcome in doubt until the very last moment".

He added: "All of the proposals put by the union and employee representatives have been thoroughly reviewed, and the significant steps taken by the company to secure alternative proposals from third parties to safeguard jobs have not resulted in a viable alternative to the closure of the mill.

"The Company is offering significantly enhanced redundancy terms and career counselling to all staff at Inverurie."

Burke said the union was now working to secure the best severance pay possible.

"IP is one of the biggest paper manufacturers in the world and can afford to pay decent severance terms given the loyalty and dedication of our members," he argued.

The mill's closure removes 250,000 tonnes of uncoated freesheet capacity from the group's European output and means that IP has now exited the UK paper manufacturing sector.

Mary Laschinger, president of International Paper Europe, Middle East, Africa and Russia, said: "In the last three months, we have worked together with the appropriate representatives to evaluate alternatives for the future of the mill.

"Unfortunately, none of the options provided a business plan that was financially viable and that would safeguard jobs."

She said the focus now is to help staff make the transition to new employment and to continue its efforts to market the site for future reindustrialisation.

The move is a further blow for the Scottish paper industry following the closure of Curtis Fine Papers last year with the loss of 180 jobs.