CHETWYND, British Columbia (From the Alaska Highway News) -- What was intended to be a temporary maintenance shutdown has turned into the worst case scenario for 109 workers at a pulp mill outside of Chetwynd.

Chetwynd Mechanical Pulp ceased production in September in hopes of weathering low commodity prices, with a plan to restart in January, Deputy CEO Pedro Chang said in October. 



Now, the closure has been extended to March 2016. As a result, layoff notices have been issued to 109 employees, the company said in a Nov. 27 release. 



According to District of Chetwynd mayor Merlin Nichols, around 120 employees were working at the plant in early November during the shutdown.

"It's sad. I've hardly had anytime to react," Nichols said shortly after hearing the news. He said he was informed minutes before the news release went out Friday afternoon.

"Can you imagine going home today and saying, 'well kids, I am going to have lots more time to spend with you now, but no money?' I really feel for the families that are affected. It's going to hit hard for the next few months."

Mill owner Paper Excellence Canada said in October that it was experiencing a Bleached Chemi Thermo Mechanical Pulp (BCTMP) market that was underpriced and believed a temporary shutdown would allow it to do some needed repairs at the plant.



"By taking advantage of the poor market condition to do these repairs and improvements, we hope to position the mill for long-term success as the market improves," Chang said.

On Friday, the company said market conditions had not improved, and determined that a further closure was necessary.



"That the BCTMP market has taken the downward turn it has is truly unfortunate," Chang said. "We are a company who prides ourselves with revitalizing Canadian mills. This is not an easy decision."

Nichols said he felt encouraged after a visit to the plant on Nov. 4, when he learned that only about 18 people had been laid off due to the shutdown at that point.

"But apparently my hopes were not well grounded," he said on Friday.

He was not given any indication that this news would be forthcoming during that meeting but said, "I can't fault the local manager for that. He was quite clear that we would know anything just about as soon as he knew anything. This is probably a shock and a heartache to him too," Nichols added.

According to the mayor, the mill's employees were from Chetwynd, Groundbirch and Dawson Creek.

Paper Excellence purchased the Chetwynd mill in 2014 investing $50 million in upgrades prior to its reopening in May. It was previously owned by Tembec.


British Columbia produces some of the world's highest quality BCTMP, which is used for printing and writing papers, specialty papers, tissues and paper towels, the company writes.

In addition to the Chetwynd mill, Paper Excellence owns and operates pulp mills in Canada located in Mackenzie, Skookumchuck, Howe Sound, two mills in Saskatchewan and one in Nova Scotia.