Loans Support Cleaner Air, Rural Jobs
People who live in Pictou County will have better air quality, more jobs, and a stronger, more competitive local employer with loans announced today, April 5, for Northern Pulp Nova Scotia Corp.
"More than 250 families depend on the Northern Pulp mill directly, and hundreds more businesses in this community, and across the province," said Percy Paris, Minister of Economic and Rural Development and Tourism. "Clearly, the province has several hundred reasons to help the company respond to the community's concerns about air quality while protecting and increasing jobs and improving the company's overall competitiveness.
"Working with rural employers like Northern Pulp is helping Nova Scotia start to turn the corner after 20 years of poor economic performance. Statistics Canada reported today that Nova Scotia was the only province with a significant employment increase in March, up 2,900, following a similar increase the month before."
"Today's announcement helps Northern Pulp deliver on our goal to build a clean, modern and competitive forest company," said Don Breen, acting general manager, Northern Pulp. "We live in Pictou County near the mill with our families and friends, and are fully committed to doing a better job of reducing air emissions and improving environmental and operational performance to help us export value-added Nova Scotia forest products to the world."
Provincial loans, along with $5 million from the company, will allow Northern Pulp to implement new environmental technology sooner to significantly reduce air particulates, and make other capital improvements on the more than 40-year-old mill.
The new equipment, costing $12 million, more effectively removes particles from flue gas.
Northern Pulp will also spend $10.2 million to build a state-of-the-art wood-chip plant to improve supply-chain efficiency, reduce operating costs and create 20 new jobs.
These projects will help save the company $9 million annually.
"Northern Pulp has been an important customer of ours since the mill arrived in Pictou, not to mention a major employer in the area," said Dan MacDougall, president of I. Matheson and Company, which supplies boilers and other products. "As a local company, in New Glasgow since 1867, we understand the importance of innovation and investment for long-term viability and look forward to a continued partnership with Northern Pulp."
The province is providing Northern Pulp Nova Scotia Corporation a $14.7-million repayable loan and a $2.5-million forgivable loan, contingent on installing the new equipment and reaching employment and wage targets. The province has also agreed to refinance $4.5 million of a repayable loan from 2009.
"The loans from the province support a needed and welcomed large capital investment plan by Northern Pulp, allowing Northern Pulp to remain competitive and profitable in the world market," said Mark MacLaughlin, president, CEP Local 440. "Investments like these keep good jobs in rural Nova Scotia, ensuring the mill will be around for the long term, maintaining our members' jobs, pensions and also the jobs of many other local businesses that support the mill operations."
Northern Pulp will be the first customer in Pictou County to receive cleaner, cheaper natural gas as Heritage Gas expands its pipeline in the area. The announcement earlier today stated it will help the mill become more efficient and improve its environmental impact and allow Heritage to bring the benefits of natural gas to more businesses in the county.
The Northern Pulp mill helps employ more than 2,700 Nova Scotians and its continued operation is vital to the province's economic prosperity.
Since acquiring the mill in May 2011, parent company Paper Excellence Canada Holdings has invested millions of dollars and reconfirmed its commitment to building a high-value, integrated, sustainable forest sector in Nova Scotia.
Northern Pulp produces northern bleached softwood kraft, which is mainly made in Canada and the Nordic countries. It has longer and stronger fibre lengths and diameters than anywhere else in the world, making it a critical ingredient for products such as toilet paper, napkins, paper towels, adult and child diapers, packaging materials, printing paper and newsprint.
With its Acadian forest, integrated supply chain and skilled workforce, Nova Scotia can compete in this growing global market.