Domtar’s decision about possible mill in Liverpool due in March
An undated aerial photo of the former Bowater Mersey plant in Brooklyn. (Queens County Historical Society Photo Collection, courtesy of the Queens County Museum)
It will likely be March before Queens County residents find out whether Liverpool will once again be a mill town.
Last May, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said the region could be the home for a new kraft pulp mill. It all depends on whether forestry giant Domtar, which operates Paper Excellence, believes there’s a business case for it.
Nobody from Domtar or the provincial government would do an on-air interview this week. But in emailed statements, both the company and Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton said more will be known in March.
Domtar said in its statement that it’s in the final stages of a feasibility study into a new mill.
“Our team continues to work with the Province of Nova Scotia and is in the final stages of establishing a business case for building a new bioproducts mill in Liverpool.”
Rushton said in his statement that the province is open to more natural resource development, adding the province believes a new mill would be a good fit for Liverpool.
“Our interest is in the economic potential for our forestry sector and the province — creating good paying jobs, construction investment and strengthening the overall supply chain. Success in our resource sectors means success for our whole province.”
Last May, the premier announced a deal with Paper Excellence to settle the company’s $450-million lawsuit against the province after its subsidiary Northern Pulp was forced to shut down its mill in Pictou County in 2020.
As part of that deal, Paper Excellence launched a nine-month feasibility study into whether a Liverpool mill is viable.
“The province has agreed to support Paper Excellence in the idea of building a new kraft pulp mill in Queens County, in the areas around the former Bowater mill,” Houston told reporters last May. “With the support of the region’s forestry sector, the company believes that Liverpool could again support a new mill, and I agree.
“If there is a business case and the company brings forward a project, it could mean an investment of more than $1.4 billion in our economy and that’s just to build a new mill. Let me assure Nova Scotians that any project that comes forward will need to meet today’s standards and will undergo environmental assessment, significant public consulation and Indigenous engagement.”
Under the court-approved settlement agreement, Domtar’s rate of return over 20 years must be 14 per cent.
“We assess the estimated cost of construction, delivered wood, start-up and operation, labour, and funding and financing structures, among many other items,” Domtar said in its statement to QCCR.
“We are also assessing the price and market for the pulp and any other bioproducts the mill could produce.”
Houston has recently said the province needs to open up to more natural resource development, especially in light of the tariff threat from the U.S.
Bowater operated a pulp and paper mill in Brooklyn from 1929 to 2012, employing hundreds of people in Queens County.
When it closed, it threw 320 people out of work. It also affected people in other industries.
Many of the employees retired or left for jobs in western Canada or elsewhere. The region fell into an economic funk. And it took years for the local economy to recover.
When the premier announced the prospect of a new mill last spring, though, local reaction was mixed.
Some local politicians and forestry workers said it would be a welcome boon to the local economy and the industry. Some others, including local business leaders, said they were concerned about the environmental impact a pulp mill would have.
Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com
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