Thunder Bay Fine Papers

A Brief History of the Mill. The paper mill itself is 90 years old and sits on the shore of Lake Superior in Thunder Bay. Cascades operated the mill from 1993 until 2006 when the company closed the mill, due to disapproving financial conditions.

Thunder Bay Fine Papers acquired the mill in 2008 for $1. With $45 million in government grants, and investments from local investors, and even $4.5 million from Cascades who contributed to the mill's start-up costs, the mill restarted in 2008. After operating for less than 3 months, the mill was idled. A receiver took over the mill in October 2008, and Thunder Bay Fine Papers was dissolved. A local group of investors joined together to form Superior Fine Papers, and acquired the mill from the receiver in early 2009, just as it was about to be sold for scrap to a recycling company.

Superior Fine Papers purchased the mill for $2.8 million. $750,000 was paid on closing, and the remaining balance was made repayable 6 months after closing by a vendor-take-back mortgage. It is unclear why the mill failed after Superior Fine Papers took ownership; some people speculate that the perpetual reopening of the mill was part of a clever scheme to squeeze millions of dollars in funding from the Canadian Government. Due to an environmental order from the government, the electricity had to be kept on. This effectively thwarted salvage companies and the owners of the mill from demolishing the mill for scrap metal and salvageable machinery.

Present Day. Due to a crippling electrical fire, Superior Fine Papers will never resume operation again and may soon be completely torn down. From what I witnessed, it appears that someone was removing wire from a live circuit in the main transformer area and caused a massive short, which resulted in a fire that heavily damaged the main electrical room (and probably killed whoever did it). As of summer, 2013, the mill is currently being pieced apart, all scrap metal is being removed, and some of the buildings are in the process of being demolished.

If you plan to explore the mill property, I would advise that you only do so with the proper PPE. Since this was a paper mill, there are many toxic chemicals that saturate the buildings and grounds. I would advise anyone visiting the site to wear a respirator with gas cartridges, full skin coverage clothing, gloves, and closed toe footwear. There is a usually lethargic guard situated at the main gate, however entry can be attained through the rear of the property by following the train tracks. I found that the best time to explore was during weekends when the salvage team was on their down time.

There are many fascinating buildings, including a small medical facility, 2-story paper machines, tunnels, and many parts of the main mill have an almost cathedral-style construction. I highly regard this mill for anyone wishing to explore in the Thunder Bay District.