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Ontario sawmill to generate power

Sept. 19, 2013, Hornepayne, Ont. - With support from the Ontario government, Olav Haavaldsrud Timber Company has opened the Becker Cogeneration Plant. This 10-megawatt facility will use sawmill wood by-products to generate electricity for the provincial power grid and produce heat for nearby sawmill and kiln operations.

Supporting an innovative forest industry is part of the government's Growth Plan for Northern Ontario. A strong northern economy will help create a fair society and give the people of Ontario more opportunities for jobs and economic prosperity.

Ontario's support for this project includes a conditional grant of $11.867 million through the Forest Sector Prosperity Fund, a $17.8-million loan guarantee through the Forest Sector Loan Guarantee Program and $1 million from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation.

The $66-million cogeneration facility is next to existing lumber-manufacturing facilities, creating 20 new jobs, saving 100 more at a nearby mill and supporting an estimated 40 indirect jobs in collecting forest biofibre.

Olav Haavaldsrud Timber Company Ltd. is the second-largest employer in the Northern Ontario community of Hornepayne. The plant will consume 175,000 to 200,000 tonnes of sawmill wood by-products annually.

September 19, 2013  By press release