Four forest-related projects in northeastern Ontario are being funded to the combined total $17.3 million in subsidies from the provincial government.
Kevin Holland, the government's associate forestry and forest products minister, was in Chapleau Sept. 2 to make the announcement.
The funding is the latest in series of investments coming through the provincial Forest Sector Investment and Innovation Program and the Forest Biomass Program.
According to the province:
- Interfor is receiving over $9.6 million to modernize the Elk Lake sawmill with a forest biomass-powered energy system that will increase production by 27 per cent, cut natural gas use by 80 per cent and reduce annual operating costs by nearly $3 million
- GreenFirst Forest Products in Chapleau is receiving over $5.9 million for a new production line to increase productivity by 24 per cent and more than $1.6 million to plan a biofuel facility that will diversify operations, with long-term potential to create 30 direct and 70 indirect jobs
- Atlantic Power is receiving over $180,000 to upgrade the Calstock Power Plant's control system, maintaining reliable bioenergy generation and a strong local market for biomass
The province said six new jobs will be created while more than 320 direct jobs will be maintained at these facilities.
GreenFirst CEO Joël Fournier called the funding "an investment in the people of Chapleau. Modernizing the sawline and planer ensures the facility stays competitive for the long run, he said. The biomass component could create a "whole new industry" creating up to 30 jobs in the region.
Dominic Lemieux, Atlantic Power's general manager for Ontario operations, said Calstock has been running biomass-generating electricity since 2000. Making upgrades to the steam turbine control "is what keeps that going for years more" and protects an outlet for biomass and mill by-products in the Hearst area.
Interfor's Stuart Card, vice-president of eastern operations, said the investment protects the Elk Lake mill's competitiveness while supporting the businesses up and down the value chain.
The province frames these investments as part of its "road map" to protect a struggling industry beset by U.S. tariffs and steer it into a different direction with a more diversified global client base.
"We are making strategic investments to build on the forest sector's strengths and put our province at the centre of the global forest economy," said Holland in a news release.
The government said it's delivered almost $90 million in funding through its Forest Sector Investment and Innovation Program, which has leveraged an additional $420 million in outside investment in the sector.
More than $83 million has been funnelled through the Forest Biomass Program to spend on 71 projects over three years. That's created more than 115 new jobs, the province said, and securing more than $276 million in outside financing.
