McInnis Cement announced that the financial structure of its new generation cement plant under construction in the Gaspé region has been completed. National Bank of Canada, as sole bookrunner of the bank syndicate, has confirmed the availability of a $360M loan for the project. This amount is in addition to the $500M in equity from private and public investors including the joint venture formed by the groupe Beaudier and La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, as well as the participation of Investissement Québec (IQ). Furthermore, IQ has also provided a $250M commercial loan, for a total of 1.1 billion $.
« We are pleased that the project can be realized without any subsidy; we are also very proud to be able to complete, more than 30 years after it was imagined by local entrepreneurs, this visionary, ambitious and modern cement plant at the cutting edge of technology », says Christian Gagnon, CEO of McInnis Cement. « Construction has begun and the project is well under way. Moreover, the ecological footprint of this flagship project for the cement industry in Canadaand across the world will be one of the lowest in the industry. »
Project details
The Port-Daniel cement plant:
1.Will use up to 40 % less fuel per ton of cement than traditional cement plants (due to higher use of hydroelectric power) reducing emissions of greenhouse gas;
2. Will comply with the US standards set out in the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP (2015)), which are more stringent than those presently applied in Quebec. For comparison, the NESHAP 2015 standard applicable to the emission of particulate matter from the kilns is 15 times more stringent than the one applied in Quebec (maximum of 10 grams per ton of clinker produced, while the Quebec standard allows 150 grams per ton of clinker (mixture of limestone and silica)). The Port-Daniel cement plant will be the only one in Canada to comply with the NESHAP 2015 standards;
3. Will be equipped with all the latest technology for improved environmental performance, including the latest generation bag filters throughout the plant for improved efficiency;
4. Will also utilize maritime transportation for fuel, further reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with the project.
The project will use petroleum coke as fuel, an oil refinery residue with a high heating value. The cement plant represents one of the more ecological ways of putting this residue to good use. Its kilns that operate at very high temperatures enable its usage while reducing atmospheric emissions through a succession of high performing filtration stages of the combustion gases.
« Over the coming years, we intend to reduce even further the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) by partly replacing the petroleum coke with biomass, available in the Gaspé region. This partial conversion to biomass is at the very heart of the concept of this new cement plant » added Mr. Gagnon.
McInnis Cement has released, on a voluntary basis, the documents related to the environmental assessment of thePort-Daniel cement plant project, although the project is not subject to the BAPE process. However, the environmental Impact study has been updated – a comprehensive, rigorous and meticulous undertaking performed by dozens of professionals from independent firms – and has been available on the McInnis Cement website sinceNovember 2013. Moreover, the monitoring committee of the project has been active since March 2013 and an information office has been opened in Port-Daniel since June 2013 to answer questions of citizens and workers wishing to learn more about the project.
« We have received at our offices people who are proud to see this major project move forward, as well as workers pleased to be part of the construction of a project that will have a significant economic impact for years to come, and that will provide quality jobs to the Gaspé region. The Port-Daniel cement plant will favorably position Quebec on the North American export market and strengthen its competitiveness in the cement industry. For years, we haven't seen such a unique project of its type and size in all of eastern North America. We are determined to make the Port-Danielcement plant a sustainable and profitable project for all Quebeckers », concluded Mr Gagnon.
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