A couple of hearings to pay attention to today:

Terrace Bay Pulp

Terrace Bay Pulp will be in a Toronto courtroom today to present their latest update to the Ontario Superior Court.

Terrace Bay Pulp will be asking for court approval for the sale of the mill to AV Terrace Bay (a new company formed by Aditya Birla Management Corporation Private Ltd.)

The mill will also be asking for a sixth extension to their creditor protection period (until October 31, 2012) in order to complete a sale of the mill.

Tangshan Sanyou Xingda Chemical Fibre Co. Ltd. of China is eager for today’s court hearing because they insist they have a superior offer that the court needs to consider, regardless of the fact their binding offer was received almost 4 months after the court approved deadline for submission of binding offers.

Tangshan feels their offer is superior because under their proposal, the Province of Ontario would be fully repaid, and there would be $10 million remaining to satisfy the claims of other creditors.

NewPage Port Hawkesbury

Today a hearing will be held in Halifax by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board.

Pacific West Commercial Corp., the company that wishes to take over and reopen the Port Hawkesbury paper mill, has filed an application jointly with Nova Scotia Power, to the review board for a load retention rate mechanism.

The load retention rate is intended to provide a positive contribution to the fixed costs of the electricity system so Nova Scotia Power’s rate payers will be better off with the mill operating under the load retention rate that if the mill does not operate.

Pacific West Commercial Corp. said in their application that obtaining an appropriate electricity cost is the single most critical element in ensuring a successful restructuring plan for the mill.  Without it, Pacific West Commercial Corp. will not finalize its arrangements to acquire the mill.

Lawyer Bill Mahody, a consumer advocate appointed to this case by the provincial government and the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board, says the proposed power rate arrangement is too risky for Nova Scotia’s rate payers.

So far, the Nova Scotia Government has spent $7.6 million keeping the NewPage Port Hawkesbury mill hot idled.