SASKATOON -- Paper Excellence says site preparation and engineering design work is being done at the pulp mill in Prince Albert before a planned opening in 2023.

The company has hired a safety manager and a community and government relations manager says vice-president of environment, health and safety and corporate communications, Graham Kissack.

“Between now and the end of the year, we’re going to see a dramatic uptick in the number of people employed at the site. And actively working to prepare and ready the site for the construction which will start in the next six to 12 month window,” Kissack said.

He says some demolition cleanup will take place on the property in advance of the construction needed to redesign the facility. He estimates the pulp mill will be operating by the summer or fall of 2023.

Once operational, the pulp mill will produce northern bleached softwood craft pulp. Kissack says the company has access to some timber and continues to look for more fiber supply from Saskatchewan harvesters.

Paper Excellence has also announced its interest to purchase Domtar Corporation on May 11 for $3 billion dollars with a cash buyout of $55.50 per share.

Paper Excellence is positioning itself to have access to more markets with the proposed acquisition of Domtar, says Kissack. And the global commodity price of pulp has increased during the last year which has been good for business.

The deal is subject to approval from shareholders and regulatory bodies in Canada and the United States.

“It’s going to make us far stronger, more competitive and diverse in products and (give us) better access to global marketplaces to sell our products,” said Kissack.

Domtar is a publicly traded company with corporate offices in Montreal and South Carolina, operating pulp and paper mills in Canada and the U.S.

Paper Excellence is a privately owned company.

The pulp and paper mill in Prince Albert was established by Weyerhaeuser Pulp and Paper in 1988. The company began to shut down the operations in 2006 and sold the property and assets to Domtar 2008.

In 2011, Domtar sold the property to Paper Excellence. A non-compete clause that prevented Paper Excellence from producing pulp at the mill ended in March 2020.