A central Alabama paper company facing nearly $230,000 in fines after a worker was fatally electrocuted said Friday it disputes the penalties from the U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration but will cooperate with the agency.

South Coast Paper, LLC., based in Maplesville, in Chilton County, was cited Thursday by OSHA after the agency determined it willfully ignored safety protocols that led to the electrocution death of a 36-year-old sheet machine worker. The agency is proposing $227,040 in fines.

“South Coast Paper has fully cooperated with OSHA and the authorities during inspections of the worksite and gathering of information. Employee safety is of the utmost importance to us here at South Coast Paper,” the company said in a statement Friday to AL.com. “While we disagree with information that has been circulated and the citations issued by OSHA, we will continue to cooperate with OSHA in good faith.”

A sheeter machine operator was working at the company’s Maplesville facility on Sept. 28, 2022, when he and other employees noticed a conveyor belt stopped working.

While replacing the belt’s motor, and without deenergizing other machines in use, a hot wire on the ground became energized and the sheeter machine operator touched the metal, fatally electrocuting him, according to OSHA.

South Coast Paper offered their condolences to the worker’s family, calling the death a “tragic accident.”

“South Coast Paper is deeply saddened by the tragic accident that took the life of one of its valued employees. As a small, minority-owned business located in a tight-knit community, all of us at South Coast Paper feel the weight of this sudden loss of life,” the statement continued. “We offer our deepest condolences to the family and all others who have been impacted by the death of their friend and coworker.”

OSHA cited the company with one willful violation for allowing employees to perform maintenance on machinery without ensuring the development and documentation of hazardous energy control procedures and that they were followed.

The agency also cited South Coast Paper with a repeat violation for allowing workers to perform maintenance on machines without first being trained to make sure they possessed the knowledge and skills for safely applying, using and removing hazardous energy controls.

OSHA cited the company for a similar violation in June 2022 at its Burlington, New Jersey, facility, the agency said.

South Coast Paper was also cited by OSHA for lack of machine guarding, and not providing clear access in front of a 480-volt breaker panel nor training on electrical safe work practices.

The company has 15 days from OSHA’s citations to either accept the fines, request a conference with OSHA or contest the penalty before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.