Thunder Bay Fine Papers hasn't given up on its chance to purchase and restart the mothballed Cascades mill in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Now they are just one week away from finalizing the purchase agreement.

"It's almost there now," said Andre Nicol, spokeman. "I'm going to tell you the truth now. The financing is almost all in place."

Between 25 and 30 local business owners have committed almost $5 million to make the sale happen. The provincial government and even Cascades itself have contributed to the purchase deal.

After the deal is finalized, Thunder Bay Fine Papers plans to immediately get 20-25 employees back to work to begin start up work - starting with turning the heat back on.

Some repair work will be required - primarily on the roof and boiler. The mill has been closed since February of 2006.

By March, they intend to have one of the paper machines operating. Their spokesman conceded that the mill can't turn a profit with just one machine in operation. The 2nd machine would be operational by May with the 3rd machine to follow by the fall of 2008.

December 14th is the goal to finalize the deal to purchase the mill.

Cascades made high-end coated paper for colour, glossy advertising and sales promotion materials at the mill. Thunder Bay Fine Papers believes the market is strong for this type of paper, adding calls have been coming from the United States and across Canada.

Source:
Mill deal 'almost there' (Thunder Bay Source)