ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Army Reserve quartermaster unit that included soldiers who refused orders in Iraq last year has been disbanded, and the facility that housed it is being closed under a base realignment plan.

The name of the 343rd Quartermaster Company is being changed to the 371st Chemical Company and it is moving to Greenwood, Reserve officials said.

The closure of the 41-year-old base, which will result in the loss of six jobs, has been approved by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission, but many South Carolina elected officials said they did not know about it.

The moves have nothing to do with the disciplining of a small number of soldiers for refusing orders to drive a fuel convoy in Iraq in 2004, said Maj. William Ritter, spokesman for the Army Reserve 81st Regional Readiness Command in Birmingham, Ala.

About 20 of the 79 soldiers assigned to the 343rd Quartermaster Company will remain in Rock Hill as part of a detachment for the Greenwood headquarters of the 371st Chemical Company, officials said. If Congress approves the base realignment plan including the closure of the Rock Hill base, then those soldiers would be assigned to Greenwood or Wilmington, N.C. The remaining soldiers would be given the opportunity to transfer or retrain for another unit.

The unit caused an international stir last year when several soldiers refused to transport fuel to Taji, north of Baghdad. Some soldiers said the fuel was tainted and that the trucks lacked armor and maintenance. Another unit from the company was assigned to the fuel convoy the same day. At least five soldiers received reductions in rank, lost pay and were ordered to perform additional duties.

The Rock Hill base could close as early as 2007.

The center was listed under North Carolina in a Defense Department list of proposed closures. It was not mentioned in a list of closing sites in South Carolina.

"I know of no one in the state who knew this center was on the table," state Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom told The (Rock Hill) Herald for a story Wednesday.

Officials were looking into why the center was listed under the wrong state, said Audrey Jones, a spokesman for the realignment commission. The Defense Department recommended closing the Rock Hill center to save money on personnel and maintenance, according to a report.