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Bathurst gets 12 new jobs

Bathurst gets 12 new jobs; Start-up company creates wood products from lower-valued lumber using heat technology Times & Transcript (Moncton) Wednesday, October 22, 2008 Page: A7 Section: News;News Byline: Times & Transcript Staff Business New Brunswick Minister Greg Byrne was in Bathurst yesterday announce financial assistance to help a start-up company create 12 new jobs in Bathurst. Future Alternative Wood Products will use $346,000 in financial assistance to help establish an operation that will create high-value wood products from lower-valued lumber using a new heat treatment technology called Bois Ecothermo Wood. The government's assistance through the Restigouche-Chaleur Economic Development Fund of $100,000 and a loan guarantee of $246,000 will help the company cover capital costs and equipment costs. "Our support for Future Alternative Wood Products is another step in this government's plan to transform the economy of northern New Brunswick and achieve self-sufficiency for all parts of the province," says Byrne. Specifically, Future Alternative Wood Products will use parts of the funds to purchase a 30-cubic metre capacity oven with a yearly production of three million board feet. Yesterday, Byrne was joined by the company's president, Pierre Friolet, Liberal MLA Brian Kenny and Bathurst Mayor Stephen Brunet. "We are at the beginning of an emerging market," said Friolet. "Working with a technology that brings additional value-added capability to the wood industry is exciting for both ourselves and our customers. Already, the opportunities that have materialized have exceeded our expectations both locally and internationally, and thanks to all our funding partners, we are bringing these opportunities to the north shore of New Brunswick." © 2008 Times & Transcript (Moncton)