EVANSVILLE, IND. (Oct. 30, 3 p.m. ET) – Berry Plastics Corp. plans to invest $96 million to reopen a plant in Madisonville, Ky., that it closed in early 2012.

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear announced the decision Oct. 30. The plant will employ more than 400 full-time workers.

The Evansville-based company, which went public on the New York Stock Exchange in September, will reconfigure the Madisonville operation to increase capacity. The plant will make rigid open-top products.

The plant formerly made plastic closures. Berry bought the plant as part of its August 2011 purchase of Rexam plc’s specialty and beverage closures business.

Before it closed, the plant employed about 140.

“Today’s announcement is a demonstration that Berry Plastics continues to build on its growth as a leading global manufacturer in its field,” Beshear said in a news release.

Jon Rich, chairman and CEO of Berry Plastics, said the plant will re-start production in 2013.

The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority has preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $10 million through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the term of the agreement through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.

KEDFA also approved Berry Plastics for tax benefits up to $450,000 through the Kentucky Enterprise Initiative Act, which allows approved companies to recoup Kentucky sales and use tax on construction costs, building fixtures, equipment used in research and development and electronic processing equipment.

When the plant closed, Berry blamed excess capacity, and said the decision would help streamline operations and improve its cost structure. At the time, Berry officials said they had not decided on future plans for the Madisonville plant.