The Government of Alberta is providing more than $1.5 million to support an almost $50-million modernization and expansion of Alberta Newsprint Company’s mill in Whitecourt, Canada.

The investment will allow the facility to manufacture multiple paper grades, reducing its reliance on conventional newsprint and giving the mill greater access to higher-value paper markets.

For Alberta’s only newsprint mill, the project represents more than a capacity investment. It is part of a broader effort to adapt an established paper asset to changing demand.

Whitecourt Mill Moves Beyond Conventional Newsprint

Alberta Newsprint Company operates an integrated pulp and paper facility in Whitecourt.

The mill began operations in August 1990 and currently operates one paper machine capable of producing approximately 747 metric tonnes per day of newsprint, book papers and high-bright papers. The site also produces pulp.

Under the new project, the company will modernize the facility so that it can manufacture a broader range of paper grades.

This diversification is significant as traditional newsprint markets have faced structural pressure from declining print newspaper circulation and the continued shift toward digital media.

Rather than depending as heavily on one mature paper category, the investment will give Alberta Newsprint Company greater flexibility to respond to changing customer demand and pursue higher-value products.

The company has not yet detailed all of the additional paper grades that will be enabled by the modernization.

Alberta Provides $1.5M Through Investment Fund

The provincial government is supporting the project with more than $1.5 million through Alberta’s Investment and Growth Fund (IGF).

The IGF is an invite-only incentive intended to help secure private-sector projects where identifiable barriers remain during the final stages of an investment decision.

It targets investments expected to create jobs, increase economic activity and improve productivity within Alberta.

In this case, the government funding is supporting a private investment approaching $50 million.

“Our government is proud to support Alberta Newsprint Company’s expansion in Whitecourt,” said Joseph Schow, Alberta’s Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration.

He said the project would strengthen the province’s forestry sector while supporting employment in rural communities.

Expansion Protects More Than 220 Existing Jobs

The project is expected to create 13 permanent full-time positions and approximately 25 temporary construction jobs.

More importantly for the local economy, the modernization is also expected to help retain more than 220 existing jobs at the Whitecourt operation.

For a rural forestry community, maintaining an existing industrial facility can have effects extending beyond employment inside the mill.

Alberta Newsprint Company consumes wood fibre from the province’s forestry sector, connecting the mill with harvesting, transportation and other parts of the regional forest-products supply chain.

Keeping the facility competitive therefore supports an established outlet for Alberta fibre as well as the mill’s direct workforce.

Paper Grade Flexibility Becomes the Strategic Goal

The central feature of the investment is product flexibility.

Newsprint mills were historically designed around large-volume production of relatively standardized grades. As demand patterns change, however, the economics of relying heavily on a single declining market become increasingly challenging.

Being able to manufacture several grades can give a mill more options when allocating production.

Instead of treating existing paper-making infrastructure as suitable only for traditional newsprint, producers can potentially reposition machines toward adjacent grades where equipment capabilities, fibre furnish, product specifications and market economics allow.

Alberta Newsprint Company’s investment follows that logic.

“This investment supports Alberta Newsprint Company’s continued modernization and helps position our Whitecourt facility for long-term competitiveness,” said general manager Mike Putzke.

He added that the company is seeking to diversify its products and strengthen its operations while maintaining employment in Whitecourt.

Alberta’s Only Newsprint Mill

Alberta Newsprint Company occupies a distinctive position within the province’s forest-products industry.

The operation is a joint venture involving The Stern Group through Whitecourt Newsprint Company Limited Partnership and West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.

As Alberta’s first and only paper mill, the facility converts locally sourced wood fibre into pulp and paper products.

Its existing 747-tonne-per-day paper machine gives the operation substantial production capability, but the modernization illustrates how the value of that asset increasingly depends on flexibility rather than newsprint volume alone.

The almost $50-million project therefore represents an attempt to extend the competitiveness of an existing mill by adapting its product portfolio rather than building an entirely new production platform.

Newsprint Assets Search for New Markets

The Whitecourt project also reflects a wider challenge facing traditional printing-paper producers.

Digitalization has structurally changed demand for newsprint and several other graphic paper grades. Mills operating in these markets have consequently faced decisions over closures, conversions, product diversification and investment in alternative grades.

Not every newsprint machine can economically switch to another product. Technical capability, capital requirements, fibre availability, energy costs and access to customers all influence whether diversification makes commercial sense.

For Alberta Newsprint Company, management and the provincial government are betting that modernization can provide a viable route forward.

The immediate numbers are relatively straightforward: almost $50 million of investment, more than $1.5 million of provincial support, 13 new permanent jobs and more than 220 existing positions supported.

The longer-term measure of success will be whether greater paper-grade flexibility allows the Whitecourt mill to reduce its exposure to declining conventional newsprint demand and establish competitive positions in higher-value markets.

Last Updated on 25/08/2026 by Jota Machinery