6 July 2006 – Jonquiere (CAN): Cascades has announced that its FjordCell pulp mill in Jonquiere, Quebec, will close indefinitely. The mill produces 82,000 tonnes of Kraft pulp each year, which is sold exclusively to the Jonquiere-based Cascades Boxboard Group and the Rolland division of the Cascades Fine Papers Group.
For several months the plant, which employed 70 people, had been experiencing consistent financial losses as a result of the strong Canadian dollar, as well as rising energy and wood costs.
President/CEO Eric Laflamme said in a statement:Â "Notwithstanding the excellent cooperation of our employees and a recent increase in sales prices, we have been unable to make this mill profitable, leaving us no other choice but to suspend operations. We sincerely regret the impact that this decision will have on our employees and we are committed to re-evaluating the situation should conditions affecting operating costs and the exchange rate improve."
