N.S. government awaiting news on feasibility study for new pulp mill in Liverpool

Michael Gorman · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 09, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: March 9

Nine months aft officials with Northern Pulp started examining the viability of a caller mill successful Queens County, Premier Tim Houston says it is his knowing the enactment continues.

Houston announced past May that his authorities and officials with Northern Pulp's genitor institution had reached a colony statement that ended years of ineligible wrangling, and would let clip to research the viability of constructing a caller mill astatine oregon astir the tract of the erstwhile Bowater mill adjacent Liverpool.

That enactment was expected to instrumentality astir 9 months. One of the conditions the institution has acceptable for moving up with a caller mill is that it would make an interior complaint of instrumentality greater than 14 per cent.

On Friday, the premier told reporters that helium believes the institution is inactive moving to implicit its feasibility study. It's just to accidental that institution officials privation to determination up and deliberation determination is simply a concern case, said Houston, but helium added that they're inactive crunching numbers.

"I deliberation they're astatine the financing signifier and seeing what financing is possible," helium said.

Houston said helium hasn't received a ceremonial petition for fiscal assistance from the company.

• N.S. government, Northern Pulp scope colony agreement

The Northern Pulp mill successful Pictou County was forced to unopen down successful 2020 pursuing the company's nonaccomplishment to get provincial support for a caller effluent attraction facility. A replacement was required aft members of the legislature unanimously passed the Boat Harbour Act, a measure that ended aboriginal the lease Northern Pulp had to use the erstwhile tidal estuary to dainty effluent from the mill.

Since then, the institution filed for creditor protection. Ensuing lawsuits and ineligible threats betwixt the 2 sides came to an extremity past May erstwhile the colony statement was announced.

Natural Resources Minister Tory Rushton told reporters connected Friday that the latest update helium has connected the record is that institution officials program to record much paperwork adjacent week arsenic portion of the creditor extortion proceedings successful British Columbia Supreme Court.

"What's successful those papers, I don't know," helium said.

"We've been precise supportive of the process, trying to marque a pathway guardant for an environmentally-friendly mill — a caller epoch mill to travel to the country — but close present it's surely with the institution to marque that determination and marque that known to the public."

Premier remains hopeful

A institution spokesperson confirmed to CBC earlier this week that officials are preparing to record their adjacent affidavit for the tribunal hearing.

Rushton said the forestry assemblage needs a marketplace for pulpwood and low-grade wood products to instrumentality the spot of what Northern Pulp utilized to consume. It's thing that was outlined successful the Lahey report connected sustainable forestry, helium said.

But whether that caller marketplace is simply a caller pulp mill remains to beryllium seen. Rushton noted that there could beryllium different options, specified arsenic the instauration of biofuels and aviation fuels utilizing forestry byproducts. A caller survey also made the lawsuit that the improvement of biomass combined vigor and powerfulness plants, on with associated territory heating networks, could make a marketplace for low-grade wood and chips.

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A caller mill would person "a immense impact" connected the forestry sector, including for radical who enactment successful the woods and woodlot owners who request their onshore managed, said Rushton.

"Forestry touches each country of this province," helium said.

The premier agreed, saying determination is "a tremendous request for a mill successful this province."

"That's for definite and surely the manufacture is hopeful — I'm hopeful."