Warren Beatty, vice president of human resources at the Neucel Specialty Cellulose Pulp Mill, gave a short update at the economic development open house in the Village of Port Alice Sept. 29.
Beatty said he has been with the company for three years and owns a home in Port Alice.
“I have a dog in the fight as well,” he said.
Beatty explained the mill is currently in a production curtailment – not “closed”.
That curtailment was caused by the exchange rate on the Canadian dollar, the price the company can sell its product for and the price of oil.
Beatty said Neucel has had engineers out at the mill looking at which things need to be repaired, replaced and upgraded in order to “reduce our fixed costs. We have to be cost competitive.”
Beatty is confident the mill will reopen in the spring of 2016.
“There’s a lot of work to be done so that we are a reliable, long-term asset to our shareholders and the village.”
