Supported by the Government of Alberta through ERA, the Mercer Peace River (MPR) pulp mill in Northern Alberta undertook a capital investment project in 2021 to transform its fibre procurement process, improving environmental performance and creating a more sustainable business model.
By way of this investment, MPR will significantly lower its carbon footprint while creating and sustaining jobs. This transformative process improvement optimizes MPR’s forestry operations, allowing for enhanced natural GHG sinks, novel fuel switching from fossil fuels to biomass, and increased low-emitting electricity generation.
“Through responsible reforestation, MPR is ensuring forests remain a renewable resource,” says Cal Dakin, MPR’s Director of Innovation. “This approach supports the environment and the economy, providing good, high-paying jobs for the community.”
With an investment of $7.5 million through ERA’s Shovel-Ready Challenge, the project entails the building of a state-of-the-art facility equipped with some of the most innovative debarking, chipping, and monitoring technologies, as well as a fleet of high-efficiency 10-axle log trucks.
These technologies will allow for greater utilization of the hardwood trees and optimization of the pulping process, resulting in the need for fewer fibre resources.
Completed in 2023, a key component of the project was the elimination of diesel woodchippers in the forest. Now, logs are cut-to-length on-site, transported to the mill, and processed using leading-edge biomass=powered debarking and chipping technologies.
Along with mitigating the risk of biomass-fueled fires and fueling the mill, the project is projected to reduce MPR’s emissions by over 900,000 tonnes of CO2e while sequestering an additional 2.6 million tonnes of CO2e through forest preservation by 2050.
MPR also anticipates a reduction of approximately 500,000 trees annually to meet pulp production goals, creating a more efficient and economic process. The project will also help sustain jobs that support the forestry operation while creating new longterm career opportunities.
“The Fibre Procurement Project is not just a significant step for MPR, but could be a gamechanger for the forestry sector,” asserts Dakin. “ERA’s support has been instrumental in the project’s success, which is reducing emissions and waste, creating several new jobs, and ensuring Canada’s competitiveness on world markets.”