A handful of businesses and a local community got an economic boost from the province on Jan. 30.
Michael Gravelle, the province's Minister of Northern Development and Mines, handed out $2.3 million in funding through support from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund, Jan. 30.
Gravelle made the announcement at Metso Minerals, located on Commerce Court in North Bay's industrial park.
The biggest cash injection was given to Metso, which received $1 million to help pay for a 1,600- square-foot facility expansion, which will create 15 more jobs on top of the 112 already at the mining technology facility.
Metso is a manufacturer of engineered products for the mine mill industry.
“We are thankful to be part of the funding announcements today and the recipient of $1 million towards expansion and new equipment required for development and manufacturing of a new innovative product line related to mill linings in the mining sector,” said Metso operations manager Gary Bell during the press conference.
North Bay Mayor Al McDonald was thrilled to find out about the new funding coming to the area. Specifically, he's excited that Metso, which has been in North Bay for 40 years, will continue to prosper here.
“Let's face it we are in a global economy around the world, and this business is competing with every other factory around the world, so if you are not growing you are not going to be successful. This investment that you are seeing an expansion is the confidence they have in the local operation when they compare it right around the world for all the different manufacturers, so it's a great signal for our city for sure,” said McDonald.
Other funding beneficiaries include Feldcamp Equipment, a hydraulic equipment supplier, which will receive $722,540 to help grow its business and expand the current operation to build new products, such as electrical control panels, and create 10 jobs.
The Municipality of Powassan received $387,646 to help build an industrial park, which would potentially attract new businesses to the community.
The North Bay and District Multicultural Centre received two forms of funding: $150,000 to help provide immigration support services in six participating municipalities in the South River to Cochrane area, 57,852 to establish a small business incubator in North Bay to help local entrepreneurs launch their companies.
“Our government recognizes that private sector expansion and job creation is vital to the growth of our northern economy,” said Gravelle in a release.
“We are pleased to support these entrepreneurs as they grow their businesses and we are also committed to helping our community partners build new infrastructure and attract new residents to the North.”
