Irving Pulp & Paper will invest $450 million in a two-phased modernization program of the west side pulp mill. The project will generate 1.2 million in person hours of construction work over two phases – equivalent to a total of 600 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs. The pulp mill investment involves no provincial or federal government funding, the company said.

“This investment is a tribute to the everyday skill, passion and dedication of all employees who help sustain world class forest products operations from our home here in New Brunswick. The pulp mill is a cornerstone for thousands of jobs – from foresters and woods workers to private wood producers, sawmills, paper, corrugated medium and high value tissue products. Throughout New Brunswick, small and medium enterprises are the backbone of the industry – over 1700 suppliers in more than 250 communities.” said Jim Irving, Co-CEO of J.D. Irving, Limited.

This spring the company will invest $198 million in a 24 month project to build a new chip screening and handling system as well as a new pulp digester which cooks the wood chips. The modern new digester will replace the 14 existing digesters at the site. The project will reduce air and noise emissions. As part of the Environmental Impact Assessment process for this project, a public meeting will be held at St. Patrick’s School on March 25, 2014.

A second investment of $250 million will commence with engineering work this coming fall. The project involves installing a modern new pulp dryer to replace the existing 3 dryers on site. This project is estimated to take 30 months with the construction start date dependent on market conditions.