Region Archives: Canada East

Jean-François Champoux

Sawmills in Quebec have not turned a profit for more than a year due to the drop in demand for lumber, according to industry experts. …The situation pushed some sawmills in the province to temporarily slow down production in 2023 to limit deficits. One sawmill in the Quebec region of Lanaudière, the Scierie Saint-Michel, is back to operating at full capacity — but at a loss, said CEO Jean-François Champoux. “The entire forestry industry has been operating at a loss since the beginning of 2023,” Champoux said. The profitability of sawmills is tied to housing starts, which themselves are influenced by interest rates. Those rates have tripled in the last two years, according to Francis Cortellino, economist for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. …Jean-François Samray, the director of the Quebec Forest Industry Council, said he expects interest rates to drop, which should mean more housing starts on the horizon.

Ottawa – The Canadian Wood Council (CWC) proudly marks its 65th anniversary as a leading force in advancing building codes and standards for wood construction, ensuring market access for Canadian wood products, and accelerating the adoption of sustainable, wood-based construction in the marketplace. “Our vision is to be passionate, credible, agents of change leading and advancing a sustainable wood culture in Canada,” says Rick Jeffery, President and CEO of the CWC. “Since our inception in 1959, we have been at the forefront of the industry ensuring building codes and standards not only keep pace with the new wood products and systems being developed, but also reflect the technological advancements taking place in the design and engineering arenas.” …Over the past six and a half decades, the CWC has played a pivotal role in shaping Canada’s timber industry. 

QUEBEC — Waswanipi Chief Irene Neeposh says she’s devastated by the loss the new $19 million sawmill near her community. The Cree Lumber sawmill, located about 20 minutes drive from the Waswanipi, in northern Quebec, burned to the ground on Jan. 21. “It looks like a total loss,” Neeposh said. …The community sawmill reopened just a little more than a year ago, after more than a decade of effort. The project was a collaboration between the Mishtuk Corporation, which is the forestry arm of the Cree First Nation of Waswanipi, and Chantiers Chibougamau, a non-Indigenous corporation with more than 60 years of experience in the Quebec lumber industry. With 51 percent of the enterprise Cree-owned, the dream was for community members to be masters of their own lumber resources. …and to build up to 2,000 houses in the Cree nation on a yearly basis and employ 30 people. 

Rowan Caseley

The mayor of Kensington is frustrated that a $150-million renewable diesel plant proposed for the town’s industrial park will not happen, and he is blaming the provincial government. Rowan Caseley says SustainAgro Ltd. is now looking at building a plant in Thunder Bay, Ont., or Debert, N.S., instead. “What was wrong with the process here? They were able to accomplish more in three days in Ontario than they could here in a year,” Caseley said, citing “a major unexplained barrier” in the road to provincial approval. …SustainAgro’s chief government and global relations officer, Joachim Stroink, said they decided to abandon plans in Kensington after provincial officials told them last year that a moratorium on new biomass projects was about to be implemented. Stroink said SustainAgro was told about a month later that there would be no such moratorium, but he said it was too late by that time.

HUNTSVILLE, Ontario — Around noon on January 20, fire fighters from the Huntsville/Lake of Bays Fire Department responded to a report of a fire at Panolam Industries in Huntsville. Fire fighters discovered debris and damage that indicated that a large two-story industrial dryer used for drying wood dust had suffered an explosion inside of it. This dryer is on the exterior of the plant. The interior of the plant was unaffected. Fire fighters then extinguished the resulting fire with the support of Panolam’s industrial fire brigade. No injuries occurred as a result of the explosion or fire. …The plant’s fire protection systems contributed greatly to minimizing the impact of the fire. [Panolam is a surface systems company for countertops, cabinet, furniture, panels and doors]

Jagmeet Singh

As people in Terrace Bay, Ontario, wait for answers around its shuttered pulp mill, they’re getting support from the provincial and federal NDP leaders who are calling for the mill to re-open. Federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh held a Zoom meeting with local officials Friday, adding his voice to calls for answers and accountability from the mill’s owners Aditya Birla. …Singh said he wants the provincial and federal governments to create better incentives for businesses to open and operate in Canada. …Companies that receive government funding but fail to provide stable employment to Canadians need to face severe penalties, he said. …Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry previously said in a statement that it is supporting the forestry sector through multiple funding programs. …Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles, who visited Terrace Bay last week and spoke to local leadership, floated the idea of employee ownership as a way forward.

KINGSEY FALLS, QC – Cascades Inc., a leader in the recovery and manufacturing of environmentally friendly packaging and hygiene products, is proud to announce that for the fifth consecutive year, it has been ranked as one of the world’s 100 most sustainable corporations by Corporate Knights, a media, research and financial information company. Ranking 38th globally, Cascades has maintained its leading industry position, being named first amongst organizations in the Containers and Packaging sector. This recognition highlights the exceptional work of companies such as Cascades that have combined environmental, social and governance considerations with business success. …”We are pleased to start our 60th anniversary year with this recognition. Looking back over the last six decades, we celebrate the rich legacy of our founders, the Lemaire brothers, who inspired a vision and approach that set us apart environmentally and socially,” said Mario Plourde, President and CEO. 

In a historic leap for employment prospects within the pulp and paper industry, J.D. Irving’s pulp and paper division has proudly announced a record-breaking recruitment drive for the year 2023. The company successfully onboarded 80 full-time employees and 100 students, making it the highest recruitment in a single year in the company’s history. The hiring process covered a diverse range of operational areas in Saint John and St. George, New Brunswick, and spanned various roles, including skilled trades, engineers, and business professionals. The remarkable surge in hiring was a result of a blend of multiple factors, including retirements, business expansion, and regular turnover within the workforce. Mark Mosher, the vice president of the pulp and paper division, emphasized the company’s unwavering commitment to investing in its workforce for future growth and sustainability. The company’s dedication to building a diverse talent pool has been a key factor in its successful recruitment drive.

Marit Stiles

NDP leader Marit Stiles is calling for the Ontario government to do more to get the shuttered pulp mill in Terrace Bay to reopen. Stiles visited the community Wednesday to meet with local leaders and speak to media. Stressing the urgency of the situation, Stiles said the government needs to intervene, seek transparency from the company and explore solutions to protect jobs. …”It’s not about the market conditions; it’s about the necessary investments into maintenance,” said Thunder Bay—Superior North MPP Lise Vaugeois. “What we hear from insiders is that the mill is viable and the price of pulp is viable, but the maintenance has not been kept up.” …”Our government will continue to explore all options for reviving operations at the AVTB mill, and support the Terrace Bay community throughout this process,” said Melissa Candelaria, press secretary for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. 

KINGSEY FALLS, QC – Cascades, a leader in the recovery and manufacturing of eco-friendly packaging and hygiene products, is proud to announce that it will celebrate the 60th anniversary of its founding in 2024. Under the theme Together, the organization will be highlighting its history, culture, values and employees throughout the year thanks to a festivity-filled calendar. One of the first projects completed was the illumination of the structure of the Builders’ footbridge, made of old paper mill equipment, which crosses the Nicolet River. This legacy to the Kingsey Falls community, built by Cascades to mark its 50th anniversary, has been illuminated since January 1, 2024. …A pioneer in sustainable development, Cascades has been recognized for its innovative practices in this area since the company’s earliest days. This year, the organization has set itself the challenge of putting forward 60 initiatives that address one or more social, economic or environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

This isn’t the first time the pulp mill in Terrace Bay shut its doors indefinitely. In the early 2000s, the mill was previously owned by Thunder Bay-based Buchanan Group and was shut down when it went into receivership. The effect of the Jan. 2 shutdown impacted the surrounding communities in many different ways. For the Municipality of Greenstone, in particular, the sawmills in Nakina and Longlac will need to look further than Terrace Bay to ensure their products get out to market. “It impacts everybody — the local businesses, it impacts the trucking companies, it impacts the fuel suppliers, it impacts all the people who drive the equipment in the bush from hauling to harvesting to laying out the blocks to road-building,” said Greenstone Mayor Jamie McPherson.

TORONTO — GreenFirst Forest Products announced that it has successfully completed the previously announced decentralization of its lumber mill and paper mill operations. In connection with the decentralization, Terry Skiffington has been engaged as Chief Executive Officer of the paper mill division. Mr. Skiffington is a skilled executive with a broad range of experience in the pulp and paper sector in Canada and globally. …Paul Rivett, Executive Chair of GreenFirst said, “We are excited to welcome Terry as CEO of Kapuskasing paper mill, as he brings a valuable wealth of knowledge and experience with him.” “The completion of the decentralization and the appointment of Terry as CEO of the Kapuskasing paper mill will allow both businesses to focus on improving operational efficiencies going forward,” said Joel Fournier, CEO of GreenFirst.

The union hall in Terrace Bay, Ontario, was packed wall to wood-panelled wall with restless steelworkers. People checked out pamphlets about applying for unemployment insurance and looked through lists of job search websites as they came to terms with the shutdown of the AV Terrace Bay pulp mill earlier this month. …It has been a crushing blow that’s left people anxious about the future, reflecting scenes that have played out in mill towns across Canada in recent years. There’s no word on when or if the Terrace Bay mill will reopen, if ever, or what the company plans to do — whether that means reopening it when market conditions improve or selling it to another company. …Kathy Howe said workers were blindsided by the closure, and questioned why they weren’t given more notice from owners and management. …Mill closures have a domino effect — local businesses often suffer too.

SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — The Town of Kensington is frustrated about losing out on a $150 million project which would have brought a woodchips-to-renewable diesel plant to the community. The proponent, SustainAgro, would have processed 40,000 tonnes of wood chips annually to produce renewable diesel fuel; secondary marketable byproducts would have included biochar, wood vinegar and graphene. The company expected to employ about 30 people initially. But somewhere along the way the project’s provincial environmental approval stalled and SutainAgro has since shifted its focus to Thunder Bay, Ont., as the frontrunner for its facility. Kensington council expressed frustration at being warned off from doing business with SustainAgro by provincial officials for unspecified reasons. To date, the town has been unable to find out what those reasons were. SustainAgro CEO Joey O’Brian…“We have accomplished as much in three days in Northern Ontario as it took us in one year in P.E.I.,” wrote O’Brian.

GREENSTONE, Ontario – This isn’t the first time the pulp mill in Terrace Bay shut its doors indefinitely. In the early 2000s, the mill was previously owned by Thunder Bay-based Buchanan Group and was shut down when it went into receivership. The effect of the shutdown impacted the surrounding communities. For the Municipality of Greenstone, the sawmills in Nakina and Longlac will need to look further than Terrace Bay to ensure their products get out to market. “It impacts everybody – the local businesses, it impacts the trucking companies, it impacts the fuel suppliers, it impacts all the people who drive the equipment in the bush from hauling to harvesting to laying out the blocks to road building,” said Greenstone Mayor Jamie McPherson. …McPherson stresses federal programs are available and the municipality will aid those affected by the Terrace Bay Mill closure.

Former Domtar employees who are being laid off with the pulp and paper mill’s closure, are receiving help to find new employment. It’s been almost six weeks since the first round of layoffs took place at the mill in Espanola on November 30. In September, Domtar announced it would indefinitely shut down the plant, leading to more than 450 employees losing their jobs. To help workers cope with job losses and find new employment, the Unifor Action Centre was set up and opened its doors in December. …The Ontario government invested $426,000 into the Action Centre. Domtar and Unifor Local 74 are also investing $184,600 into the centre. …Dubreuil said the action centre is planning to hold a number of job workshops in January, in preparation for the second round of Domtar layoffs taking place on January 19. A third round of layoffs is expected in the spring.

Remi G. Lalonde

MONTREAL — Canadian National has hired a former forest products company chief executive, Remi G. Lalonde, to lead its marketing and sales efforts. CN, which is the largest hauler of forest products in North America, today named Lalonde as its executive vice president and special advisor to the CEO, a role he’ll hold until he transitions to chief commercial officer later this year. …“The role of CCO is of the utmost importance. The diversity of his experience, including as a railway customer and as a CEO, positions him well to lead the sales and marketing team. He will play an instrumental role in accelerating sustainable, profitable growth,” said CEO Tracy Robinson. As CEO and chief financial officer of Montreal-based Resolute Forest Products, Lalonde executed strategy, managed regulatory matters, engaged with Indigenous communities and stakeholders, headed manufacturing operations, and worked with investors and suppliers.