CALEB NICKERSON
DAVIDSON June 22, 2020
On Monday evening, a crowd of more than 60 people gathered at the Davidson Sawmill for a rally in support of . . .
a project that aims to restart the dormant facility.
Several dignitaries, including Pontiac MNA André Fortin, Warden Jane Toller, Fort Coulonge Mayor Gaston Allard and Mansfield Mayor Gilles Dionne were in attendance to voice their support for the new direction they envision for the site.
Énergie Davidson, as it is known, is a plan spearheaded by Bruno St-Cyr, who has co-owned the mill with his brother since 2007. The project will see the sawmill re-open with the addition of a cogeneration plant, which uses wood otherwise destined for pulp, as well as scraps from the mill, to generate electricity and heat.
St-Cyr said that the plant is expected to generate 9.5 megawatts, and said he already has the cutting rights for pulp wood in addition to an agreement with Hydro Quebec to sell electricity back into the grid.
In addition to the local politicians, St-Cyr was also supported at the rally by Pascal Dupuis, the president of JPB Énergies, a recently constructed cogeneration facility in Valleyfield, as well as Hector “Junior” Soucie, the former mayor of Fort Coulonge and an advocate for a local forestry cooperative.
St-Cyr explained his vision to the assembled crowd and took the time to answer numerous questions.
He siad that the project was currently being held up by a lack of cutting rights (known by their French acronym GA) for the pine needed for the sawmill.
“We have cutting rights for the cogeneration plant, actually we’re waiting for the moment to get the cutting rights for the sawmill,” St-Cyr said in an interview after the rally. “We’re looking for what we had before, 39,000 cubic metres of white pine and some in hardwood too, just to get one line of production up for 12 months of the year.”
The cutting rights are controlled by the Minister of Forests, Wildlife and Parks, Pierre Dufour.
Toller said during the rally that she had discussed the issue with Minister Dufour himself in a private meeting and was optimistic about the future of the project.
“Minister [Pierre] Fitzgibbon, who is minster of economic development, he has already said he supports this project,” she said. “With Minister Dufour, he is in a big crisis right now in the Outaouais, but he sees us as a solution. He needs to give us, Bruno, the GA, I believe we’re going to get that.”
Toller added that Dufour was displeased with the closure of the Fortress Mill in Thurso last year, a facility that had received over $100 million in government support. She said that she believes the Davidson project will be an attractive project for the minister because it will be a sustainable project.
“There’s a fire burning in the Pontiac, and the only way we’re going to be revitalized psychologically, we have to be in forestry again, we have to be players again,” she said. “[Dufour] believes that, he understands that and he told me himself that he’s had it up to here with Thurso.”
St-Cyr said that if the project moves forward, it will cost about $65 million to retrofit the sawmill and build the cogeneration plant, which will be based off of Dupuis’ facility.
“We have some changes to do in the sawmill, but most of the important amounts are for the co-generation plant,” he said.
The construction will require financing, but St-Cyr said that they already have a significant amount of capital available to be able to acquire these loans. He pointed to the cooperative as a way to raise some of the money, but to also show the provincial authorities that the region is behind the project.
“We thought that , to get a lot of people involved in the project, in the region here, it would be a good fit,” he said. “I think that it’s the best way to get this project done, and it show the government, … there’s support from the community and they’re ready to put some money in the project. Not a million dollars but some money. Small amounts… it adds up with a crowd.”
During the rally, Soucie explained that the cooperative would be made up of players in the industry, such as truckers, loggers and private woodlot owners, as well as investors from the general public.
“As soon as we can get the guarantees … for the wood, the cooperative will be in operation to get the people to collaborate … [make] donations, and join as members,” he said. This project, as the years go by, could transform other projects, it would create other jobs … I can reassure you, if the project doesn’t go ahead, the money will be returned to all of you. I hope you do join us to make sure this project gets off the ground.”
