Region Archives: Canada East

Nova Scotia taxpayers are out another $15 million unless the province grants Northern Pulp an environmental approval of the mill’s controversial proposed effluent treatment plant.  On Thursday, British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick approved the terms of a $50-million loan to the beleaguered Pictou County mill from parent Paper Excellence Canada and Pacific Harbour North American Resources Ltd. Her ruling allows Northern Pulp to take an initial payment of $15 million to keep it afloat until the end of the year.  To get more from the pot, Northern Pulp and Paper Excellence will have to come back for Fitzpatrick’s approval.  The terms of that debt put it ahead of the $85 million Northern Pulp and its associated companies owe the province.

Montréal, Québec – Kruger Inc. has entered into a partnership with Pulp Moulded Products Inc. (PMP) for the supply of low-carbon footprint fibres that will enable PMP to produce a prototype of a low-cost, single-use biodegradable mask. Developed by PMP for non-frontline workers and civilians, this ecofriendly alternative will be made from KruPulp, Kruger’s FDA-compliant and FSC®-certified pulp. “Kruger is very proud to contribute to the collective effort against COVID-19 by helping PMP bring to market this innovative product entirely sourced in Canada and made from a renewable resource. Thanks to our high quality low-carbon footprint pulp, the masks will have the lowest environmental impact possible,” said Maxime Cossette, Vice President of Global Sustainability and Biomaterials, Kruger Inc. KruPulp products are composed of either recycled or virgin fibres that are sourced locally and responsibly.

OTTAWA, ON – …Canada’s forest sector has continued to adapt and implement unique technologies and processes to manufacture new products that contribute to Canada’s pandemic response. Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Seamus O’Regan, today announced a $1.3 million investment to FPInnovations for a COVID-19 response project to develop a biodegradable, sustainable filter for single-use face masks made from local, and eco-friendly solutions. Consistent with Natural Resources Canada’s work plan for personal protective equipment (PPE) waste management, FPInnovations will develop the filters using sustainable and biodegradable material made from Canadian forest fibres. Canadian pulp and paper mills will manufacture this product and provide an opportunity to diversify the forest sector’s revenue opportunities. This product has the potential for Canada to expand its markets internationally and lead the production of sustainable and environmentally friendly PPE.

OTTAWA — Canada’s leading national industry associations, including… the Forest Products Association of Canada issued the following statement regarding the notice of strike action by longshoremen at the Port of Montreal: ‘Our national associations, representing hundreds of thousands of businesses in every sector of the economy are calling on the federal government to facilitate a resolution to the ongoing negotiations between the longshoremen and the Maritime Employers Association (MEA) at the Port of Montreal. …We are calling on the federal Minister of Labour to facilitate a resolution of the negotiations between the longshoremen and the MEA to ensure the continuation of port activities. This issue requires the government’s full attention to preserve jobs and protect Canada’s economy.’

With Friday being the last day to apply for the provincial government’s residential construction rebate, contractors and builders across the province say they are seeing a big boost in business over the summer months. …The program allows homeowners to apply for either a 25 per cent rebate on home renovation projects, or a rebate of up to $10,000 on a new home valued up to $350,000 before taxes. …Curtis Mercer, CEO of the provincial branch of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, estimates that when all is said and done there will be around 10,000 applications. …According to Statistics Canada, the dollar value of building permits issued in the province rose 71 per cent from numbers in May — much higher than the six per cent average across the country. …Scott Wilson, owner of Sun Valley Greenhouses in St. John’s said the price of cedar has gone up … from around $10.20 per piece of two-by-four to $11.35.

Seamus O’Regan

OTTAWA — Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Seamus O’Regan, announced $300,000 for a COVID-19 response project by Pulp Moulded Products Incorporated (PMP) — a company based in Newmarket, Ontario, which focuses on products made from Canadian pulp. Additional support for the project is being provided by Kruger Incorporated. The project will see PMP create a prototype for low-cost, non-surgical, disposable masks for civilians and industrial workers. …The mask production and supply chain will also be 100 percent Canadian, eliminating dependency on imports for the production of non-medical masks. Funding for this project is provided through the Investments in Forest Industry Transformation program.

MONTRÉAL — Resolute Forest Products reported net income for the quarter ended June 30, 2020, of $6 million, compared to net income of $25 million in the same period in 2019 and a net loss of $1 million in Q1, 2020. Sales were $612 million in the quarter, a decrease of $143 million from the year-ago period and a decrease of $77 million from Q1, 2020. Excluding special items, the company reported a net loss of $22 million compared to net income of $11 million in the second quarter of 2019. …Yves Laflamme, president and chief executive officer… “we’ve seen stronger pulp pricing and higher lumber shipments in the second quarter, offset by a weaker paper segment, which reflects lower demand levels since the onset of the pandemic and our resulting capacity adjustments.”

The Nova Scotia government announced Wednesday that applications for the $50-million Forestry Innovation Transition Trust will open Friday, July 31. According to the province, the fund was announced in February to continue to advance the transition and development of Nova Scotia’s forestry sector. “The trust may be used by companies, organizations or post-secondary institutions working and researching in the forestry and biological resources sectors,” the province said in a press release.“ A three-member trustee board will review submissions and make spending decisions.” The province said forestry workers may also seek funding to support training or retraining, if other education funding sources have been exhausted.

The province has accused Northern Pulp of misappropriating taxpayer funds and misrepresenting its financial state to allow it to funnel more money back to its parent company.  The accusations are found in affidavits filed by high-level Nova Scotia government officials in the British Columbia Supreme Court in which they argue Northern Pulp shouldn’t be allowed to accept a $50-million loan from Paper Excellence Canada and related company Pacific Harbour North American Resources.    …According to Duff MacKay Montgomery, deputy minister at the Department of Labour and Advanced Education, Northern Pulp has soured the well with the province by playing loose with taxpayer funds. …Those negotiators saw that in 2018, when Northern Pulp had come to the province crying poor and seeking loan payment deferrals worth about $3 million, it had found $59.9 million to pay Paper Excellence Canada Holdings Corporation. [We respect the copyrights of the source publication – full access to this story may require a subscription]

Seamus O’Regan

CORNER BROOK, NL — The Honourable Seamus O’Regan, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, along with Gudie Hutchings, Member of Parliament for Long Range Mountains, announced $442,035 for Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Limited to study bioeconomic diversification opportunities while minimizing risks related to the decline in demand for newsprint. Corner Brook Pulp and Paper will look to diversify and expand its products, enabling the mill to continue accepting 100 percent locally-produced wood chips. This initiative would keep Newfoundland and Labrador’s forest supply chain operating and provide surrounding communities with a source of employment, including 1,125 direct and indirect jobs in a variety of sectors such as transportation, equipment, and maintenance. Funding for this project is provided through the Investments in Forest Industry Transformation program.

Darren Pelley

“Partnership” was the most common word in the announcement of the new Corner Brook Centre for Research and Innovation on Monday. The new centre will be operated by Memorial University and the College of the North Atlantic, with Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Limited putting up a vacant building and future maintenance. The goal is to transform the company’s vacant human resources building into a leader of research for the forestry sector and help further the life of the town’s mill. “This allows the building to have new life, and certainly as part of that is training for our employees, which is a very important aspect,” said Darren Pelley, vice-president of Kruger, which operates CBPPL. “But it also allows for the research to occur, which really brings all the key players together.” …three levels of government have stitched together $8.9 million to turn the old building into something new. 

Robin Wilber

Lumber mills in Nova Scotia are being squeezed by a double whammy of higher prices for logs and lower revenues for the wood chips and sawdust they produce as a byproduct of their operations. “The closure of Northern Pulp has dramatically affected our profitability,” said Robin Wilber, president of Elmsdale Lumber Co. “Now, we’re selling our chips to a wood pellet manufacturer at half the value of what we used to get.” …The closure of Northern Pulp has… meant woodlot owners, who used to sell their low-quality wood for pulp, no longer have that market, and it has made it less economically viable for them to have their land logged. …That shortage is coming at a time when home renovation stores throughout Atlantic Canada are short of lumber. [We respect the copyrights of the source publication – full access may require a subscription]

The province [Nova Scotia] is opposing a deal that Northern Pulp claims would allow it to continue paying severance to its laid off employees, its share of the cost of Boat Harbour’s shutdown and cleanup, safely idle its kraft pulp mill and work toward an environmental approval for a new effluent treatment plant. The deal is in the form of $50 million in interim financing being offered by Northern Pulp’s parent companies, Paper Excellence Canada and Pacific Harbor North American Resources Ltd. Without access to the loan, Northern Pulp claims that it will run out of money in early August. But the money comes with strings attached. ….The province isn’t commenting on the proposed interim financing deal or its attempts to block it as the matter is part of creditor protection proceedings in British Columbia. The Nova Scotian taxpayer is Northern Pulp’s largest secured creditor, holding just over $86 million in secured loans to the five companies associated with the mill.[We respect the copyrights of the source publication – full access to this story may require a subscription]

First, it was TP flying off the shelves during the pandemic. Now, it’s PT — or pressure-treated wood — that’s been disappearing from lumber yards around Ottawa. Blaire Cabelguen has been a contractor for 10 years, and said COVID-19 has caused one of the busiest summers he’s seen. …Cabelguen said he’s seen a 70 to 80 per cent increase in the number of clients he’s had compared to last summer, mostly people wanting work done on their decks, kitchens and bathrooms. “We basically had to tell them that now we’re booking into the winter”. …Tracking down pressure-treated wood has been particularly difficult, he added, with most store shelves “pretty well bare.”

Emergency crews battled an overnight fire at the Corner Brook mill on Thursday night into early Friday morning. The Corner Brook Pulp and Paper’s emergency whistle began blaring around 11:30 p.m. as the fire started to flare up.  …Just before the mill whistle began blasting, firefighters at Corner Brook’s fire department spotted the flames from the department’s parking lot, which overlooks the mill. Crews assembled and headed down to help the mill’s on-site fire brigade. A paper machine had caught fire, said Corner Brook’s Deputy Fire Chief Craig Harnum. “The majority of the fire was located near the roof itself, and the opening in the roof, so that made it look a little worse than what it was,” said Harnum. …Adding that within 20 minutes the blaze was brought under control, with between 22 to 25 firefighters from the two squads working hand-in-hand.

BATHURST, New Brunswick – ThermalWood Canada, a manufacturer of thermally modified wood, will greatly expand its presence in Ontario after inking an agreement with Weston Forest Products to distribute its products. The deal with Weston Forest represents ThermalWood’s first distribution agreement in North America. Weston Forest, a distributor and remanufacturer of softwood and hardwood lumber based in Mississauga, has an Ontario network numbering 300 home improvement stores and a team of 14 sales representatives. Established in 2008, ThermalWood uses a specially designed kiln to heat lumber at precise high temperatures up to 225 C. The company said its baking process modifies the wood’s characteristics producing lumber that offers improved dimensional stability and resistant to rot and damage by insects and requires no chemical additives.

Melanie Joly

The federal government is providing more than $3.9 million through FedNor in a move aimed at supporting youth initiatives and young entrepreneurs in Northern Ontario. Federal Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages Mélanie Joly announced the funding Wednesday as part of World Youth Skills Day. The non-repayable contributions will be delivered by FedNor, the federal government’s economic development organization for Northern Ontario, and go toward 28 initiatives. …Sault Ste. Marie MP and minister responsible for FedNor Terry Sheehan said the announcement “will help stem the flow of youth out-migration in Northern Ontario by creating meaningful employment opportunities and skills-training for young Canadians, while supporting our next generation of entrepreneurs.” …In Nipissing–Timiskaming, the funding includes: Canadian Institute of Forestry — $31,500 to hire a youth intern as a forest science outreach co-ordinator to assist in the delivery of forest science and knowledge exchange programs.

Marianne Berube

Nipissing University has elected a new chair for its board of governors. Marianne Berube, who previously served as chair from 2015 to 2017, was elected back to the position for a one-year term during the board’s annual general meeting. …Berube succeeds Tom Palangio as chair, who served in the role for the past two years. …Berube lives and works in North Bay and graduated from Nipissing and York Universities with degrees in environmental science and business, later obtaining professional management and certified investment management degrees. …She also is the recipient of the Influential Alumni Award from Nipissing University, the Influential Women’s Award from Northern Ontario Business, and an Ontario’s Forest Sector Champion Award from the Ontario Forest Industries Association.