OLD TOWN – Some 400 people who were employed at the Georgia-Pacific Corp. mill officially are out of work.

A deal was not reached by G-P’s Monday deadline for the state to find a buyer for the facility, and G-P officials said they were continuing with the scheduled mill shutdown.

Maine Economic Development Commissioner Jack Cashman and G-P officials said Monday in a statement that they will continue to work together toward a sale, but that there still were details that needed to be worked out.

“This means that we still are working closely to finalize an agreement with the potential buyer, but there has not been an agreement reached at this time,” G-P senior spokesman Robert Burns said Monday. “There still are a lot of hurdles to overcome, so we want to keep our expectations in check.”

The state and G-P are very close to making a deal with a group of Maine investors interested in buying the mill, according to information provided last week to laid-off millworkers.

“We’ve been working closely with the state and a buyer to reach a definitive agreement that meets our expectations; however, at this point we have not reached an agreement,” Ted Sapoznik, vice president of G-P’s consumer products manufacturing, said Monday in a press release.

G-P announced in March it was closing the Old Town facility, but agreed to work with the state for 60 days to allow time to find a new buyer. Workers also have been receiving pay and benefits during that time, but the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act period ended Monday without a final deal.

The WARN Act became effective in 1989 and offers protection to workers, their families and communities by requiring employers to provide notice 60 days in advance of plant closings and mass layoffs.

“Within the context of the WARN notice, those employees will receive their severance according to the bargaining contract or applicable laws within the next several weeks,” Burns said.

About a dozen salaried employees who have been working to maintain the mill over the last two months will stay on to complete the closure process.

“We’re as close as we’ve been with any buyer that’s come along through this whole process,” Michael St. Peter, Local 80 papermakers union secretary, said Monday. “We still feel comfortable, but it is an anxious time.”

St. Peter said the workers are very supportive and appreciative of Gov. John Baldacci and Cashman’s efforts.

“As far as the employees, everyone kind of anticipated that this was going to take some time,” St. Peter said, noting that he’s optimistic that an agreement will be reached.

“I’m very confident that we’re going to know this week one way or another, but each time there’s a deadline that we’ll feel we’ll have a firm announcement, some little thing comes up,” St. Peter said. He added that when negotiating a deal on this scale, even the little things are large factors.

Union employees seeking more information are encouraged to visit the union hall on Main Street between 9 a.m. and noon today.

Old Town City Manager Peggy Daigle had not spoken with Cashman or received the press release, but said the city would continue to work with the state whenever and wherever it can, and city officials are hopeful that a sale will be completed.

“I have to see this as still a positive, forward movement,” Daigle said Monday evening.

Cashman didn’t return a reporter’s phone calls, but said Monday in a written statement from the Department of Economic and Community Development that the state continues to work to find a buyer.

“While this has not been easy, I think we’ve made progress to broker the sale of the Old Town mill and retain family wage jobs in Old Town,” Cashman said. “We appreciate the time and efforts of everyone involved to keep this process moving in a positive direction, and recognize there’s a lot of work left to do. The governor is committed to protecting these quality jobs and helping out the employees, leaving no stone unturned in finding a new buyer.”

G-P officials are expected to meet Wednesday to discuss details of the sale, according to a press release Monday from U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe. She and other delegates made written statements Monday showing their support for millworkers and Baldacci’s efforts.

“I think from our perspective, again, there’s a lot of work to do, but we really appreciate all the work of the governor and others to keep the process moving forward,” Burns said. “All we can do is continue to work toward a win-win situation.”