The former Tembec Inc. (TSX:TMB) pulp mill in Chetwynd, B.C., shut down in September 2012, officially went into production May 1 under new ownership.
“Chetwynd started today,” Pedro Chang, deputy CEO for Richmond-headquartered Paper Excellence, confirmed in an interview.
The Chetwynd pulp mill now employs a total of 136 people, Chang said. It is the last of four mills that Paper Excellence has bought in B.C. in recent years to go into production under the new owner.
One other mill, in Mackenzie, was also shut down when Paper Excellence bought it.
Paper Excellence also owns the Skookumchuck pulp mill and the Howe Sound Pulp and Paper mill in Port Melon, two mills in Saskatchewan and one in Nova Scotia.
Paper Excellence is owned by Jackson Wijaya, whose family owns the Indonesian pulp and paper giant Asia Pulp and Paper.
Paper Excellence bought the Chetwynd mill last year and has spent $50 million upgrading it. The company also invested $115 million upgrading and modernizing the Howe Sound pulp and paper mill.
