LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The Chinese company Sun Paper announced plans Tuesday for a $1 billion mill in southern Arkansas, the paper company’s first facility in North America — a project officials had hoped to land in Adams County.

Joined by Sun Paper officials to announce the project at the state Capitol, Gov. Asa Hutchinson said the project will create 250 jobs and is one of the largest private investments in Arkansas’ history. Company and state officials said they expected the project to employ 2,000 people during its construction and create an additional 1,000 jobs indirectly in the timber industry.

The new plant will be built approximately 65 miles southwest of Little Rock in the city of Arkadelphia. An Arkansas economic development official said earlier this month that Sun Paper was also considering Mississippi for the mill.

Natchez Inc. Board Chair Sue Stedman said Tuesday Natchez was the site in Mississippi that had been competing.

“We did everything we could possibly do,” she said. “There are always going to be differences in what is offered and what your resources are, and lots of different factors come into play, but we felt like we had competed well, and were a little taken by surprise when the project went the other way.”

While leaders have to accept the decisions made by those who make it, the area has to keep moving forward, Stedman said.

“The fact that a company like that seriously considered coming here and spent money to make a determination speaks well, and will continue to work hard for the projects we are working on for this area,” she said. “It was a great project, and we were honored to be considered for it — it would have been an outstanding opportunity for the entire Miss-Lou and Southwest Mississippi region — but it is not the only project out there.”

The average salary for jobs at the mill will be $52,000, according to a memorandum of understanding the company signed with state and local officials. The project is receiving $10 million in local incentives for infrastructure at the site and another $92 million in local property tax abatement. The state is providing $12.5 million for site preparation and equipment, up to $3 million workforce training funds and a $50 million fully collateralized loan. Other state incentives include cash rebates based on its payroll, sales tax refunds on construction materials and a recycling tax credit.

Arkansas also has agreed to expedite the process for approving the air and wastewater permits necessary for the project.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.