CANADA (News release) -- Paper Excellence announced that it is nearing completion of a significant project to winterize the pulp mill at Prince Albert Pulp Inc (PAPI). Winterizing the mill means that the interior of the mill is now heated for the first time since 2014, when the site last operated. The project will cost approximately $500,000.

"Winterizing and heating the interior of the mill is another step forward as we keep working on restarting PAPI," said Carlo Dal Monte, vice-president of energy and business development for Paper Excellence. "As we all know, Prince Albert winters can be very cold, so being able to heat the interior of the mill means a safer working environment for our team and contractors that may be on site with us. Winterizing the mill also helps to prevent weather-related damage to the exterior of the mill and important infrastructure inside."

Government of Saskatchewan Ministers will be touring the site on Thursday, May 5, to see the upgrades. Last year, The Government of Saskatchewan announced 1,034,000 m3 of softwood timber allocated to support the restart of the Prince Albert mill. "We're excited to see that work is underway," Energy and Resources Minister Bronwyn Eyre said. "This project will support Saskatchewan's world class, sustainable forestry sector and create economic opportunities in the north, including over 1,650 new jobs".

The winterization project will be completed entirely by Saskatchewan contractors, including several companies from Prince Albert.