Domtar to Terminate Extended Shutdown at Espanola Mill in August

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The maintenance outage at Domtar’s Espanola Mill located at 1, Station Road is expected to end during this month. The statement released by Bonny Skene, Regional Public Affairs Manager, Domtar, the repair and maintenance work to prepare the mill for its revitalization plan is being completed.

The outage, that impacted pulp mill operations, had started during the month of May this year. Further to successful completion of the audit and inspection procedures, the company had decided to extend the outage, so as to prepare the mill for the modernization plan announced in April this year.

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Domtar had decided to cut 70 jobs from its Espanola paper mill, thereby reducing the total workforce to 430, due to its $58 million plan to consolidate the fiber production line from two to one bleach-plant and reduce batch digesters from five to three, aimed at improving the mill’s long-term sustainability. The proposed modernization works were intended to prepare the Espanola pulp and paper mill for planned capital projects over the next three years, Domtar said that time. The modernization project had received $28.8 million funding from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.

The Espanola Mill, the largest employer in Espanola, Ontario has an estimated regional economic impact of $666 million. The mill comprises of two paper machines, whose production capacity totals approximately 69,000 short tons of paper per annum.