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Fortress gets $8M loan from Quebec to restart dissolving pulp mill

A day after Fortress Global Enterprises announced it would be temporarily curtailing production at its Thurso, Quebec mill until demand for dissolving pulp increases, the province of Quebec announced it would loan the mill up to $8 million to reboot operations.

According to the CBC, the government loaned the money to as a way to get the 273 employees laid off on Monday back to work at the plant by a November 30 deadline. Fifty employees remain at the mill to maintain the equipment during the downtime.

The $8-million loan is in addition to a $5-million loan issued by the province in September. The mill is currently undergoing a strategic and financing initiative and seeking new investors.

Minister of Economy and Innovation Pierre Fitzgibbon said at a press conference that the mill is important to the local community and Quebec’s forest sector.

Read the CBC’s full story.