Worthington Mackenzie mill taken over by consortium

The province of British Columbia is no longer maintaining the Worthington-Mackenzie pulp mill in Mackenzie, B.C.

The province has made the site safe by disposing of the most toxic of the chemicals stored on site, including all of the chlorine dioxide, white liquor, black liquor, and green liquors.

The consortium is made up of a group of individuals that see potential in the mill and think they have the potential to market the mill.

Minister of Forests and Range, Pat Bell, says the interest in the Worthington-Mackenzie mill has increased significantly over the past couple of months. “There is a significant amount of money moving around B.C. right now from investors who are looking for pulp mills, saw mills, paper mills that sort of thing, it’s been quite a shift in the last 30 to 60 days in terms of the interest in the forest industry and I think that’s going to start yielding some long term results.”

In February the province stepped in to ensure the mill's remaining personnel were paid and that no environmental disasters were likely to occur. Since February, the province has spent $6 million and expects to recoup the costs. Pat Bell said, "We have put the appropriate liens in place and we do have all the tactical things that need to be done from a legal perspective. The real question is, ‘what is the value of the mill, and will that value be recovered through a sale at this point?’”

Source:

Another Chapter in Worthington-Mackenzie Mill Ends Later Today (Opinion 250 News)