Port Hawkesbury mayor says community devastated after mill sale collapses

PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. – A Nova Scotia mayor who has spearheaded the effort to save an idled paper mill says he’s devastated after a Vancouver company suddenly backed out of its bid Friday.

Port Hawkesbury Mayor Billy Joe MacLean says he worries for the 300 employees who were preparing to get back to work at the former NewPage mill in Point Tupper.

Pacific West Commercial Corp. issued a statement late Friday saying an unfavourable tax ruling from the Canada Revenue Agency made it impossible to ensure the economic viability of the mill.

The company said that despite the provincial government’s efforts to come up with a compromise to ease the tax burden, both parties decided the tax implications could not be overcome.

MacLean says he’s not pointing fingers, but rather hoping to work with the federal and provincial governments to attract a new industry to the strait region.

He says a committee will meet on Tuesday with the monitor to regroup and start developing a plan for the town.