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Paper mill, head office keeping mum on American newsprint tariff

Neither Corner Brook Pulp and Paper nor its parent company Kruger Inc. will make any public comment about an American tariff on Canadian newsprint.

News that the American government has decided to implement countervailing duties on government-subsidized newsprint exported to the United States from Canada was announced late Tuesday night.

The tariff will be applied differently to each company, depending on the level of subsidization. For Corner Brook Pulp and Paper, the duty will be one of the highest, at nearly 10 per cent.

The decision on the duty, which is being opposed by some forces within the American government, was considered preliminary and a final decision is not expected until May or possibly later.

Still, it has been reported the tariff could cost Corner Brook Pulp and Paper about $8 million in revenues annually.

The American government is also considering implementing another duty to address Canadian newsprint dumped into the American market at prices deemed unfairly low by the United States. That duty, expected to be decided on in March, is not expected to harm the Corner Brook operation as much as the countervailing duty.

The Western Star asked both the local mill management and Kruger’s head office in Montreal for interviews on the company’s perspective earlier this week, but none were granted.

In an emailed response Thursday, Kruger said the company will take more time to further analyze the detailed report on the U.S Department of Commerce’s preliminary ruling on countervailing duties.