September 28, 2012 - 4:57 PM
HALIFAX - The company buying the NewPage Port Hawkesbury paper mill in Nova Scotia says the sale has been finalized.
The $33-million sale of the Cape Breton mill to Pacific West Commercial Corp. officially closed today after document-signing sessions in Halifax and Toronto.
The Vancouver company is now the new owner of the mill, which will be renamed Port Hawkesbury Paper.
The facility was shut down last September, throwing 600 people out of work and affecting another 400 forestry workers.
The company says it plans to start producing paper early next week, reviving the largest employer in southern Cape Breton.
Under a deal struck last Saturday, the Nova Scotia government is providing a $124.5-million aid package on top of the $36.8 million it has spent keeping the mill in a so-called hot idle state.
The deal also includes an amended discount power rate agreement with Nova Scotia Power Inc. — the mill is the utility's largest customer.
The operation is expected to employ 300 workers and Premier Darrell Dexter has said the province expects loans to be repaid in full in as little as 12 years.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2012