Cascades Inc. (TSX: CAS), a leader in the recovery of recyclable materials and the manufacturing of green packaging and tissue paper products, announces that its Norampac division will close its containerboard mill located in Burnaby (British Colombia).
The Burnaby mill has an annual capacity of 128,000 short tons and specializes in the production of 100% recycled linerboard, medium and gypsum. Nearly 100 employees will be affected by the closure, which will be effective on December 1, 2011 at the latest. The mill's production will be redirected progressively towards other Norampac facilities.
“This decision was made to mitigate the negative impact of several factors such as the strength of the Canadian dollar, as well as very high labour and recycled fibre costs. In addition, the mill's profitability has been below our expectations for a few years and we could not pursue our operations under such conditions” stated Marc-Andre Dépin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Norampac.
At the same time, Norampac's management also announced that it has reached an agreement with regard to the sale of its Burnaby property.