Province Supports Community of Trenton

The province is providing $2.6 million through the Community Development Trust Fund to maintain valuable facilities and equipment at the former TrentonWorks steel manufacturing plant while efforts continue to locate a new operator.

"For close to a century, TrentonWorks has been the economic backbone of the Town of Trenton," said Economic Development Minister Angus MacIsaac. "Our goal is to find a new operator for the site that will bring quality manufacturing jobs back to the community of Trenton. It is vital that we protect the plant facilities and support continued discussions with prospective new operators."

Through the efforts of all levels of government and trustee Ernst & Young, a number of credible parties have expressed an interest in taking over the plant. The provincial investment will protect the buildings and equipment on the plant site with adequate heat and security, particularly during the winter months. Funding from the trust will support the plant through to August 2009. If a new operator is confirmed before then, any unused money will be returned to the trust.

"Sustainable communities are the future of our province," said Mr. MacIsaac. "Through the Community Development Trust, we are able to help towns like Trenton who are heavily reliant on one industry, and have been hit hard by changes in the global economy."

TrentonWorks had been a fixture in Nova Scotia since 1872. In 1995, U.S.-based Greenbrier took over the railcar manufacturing plant. In the 1990s and early 2000s, upwards of 1,400 steelworkers worked for the plant.

More recently, the business became less competitive with the rise in the Canadian dollar, increased freight costs, competition with Mexico for cheaper labour and a slump in U.S. housing markets that reduced demand for flatbed railcars. Efforts by the provincial and federal governments to convince Greenbrier to keep operating the plant, including offering financial incentives, were unsuccessful.

When Greenbrier closed the plant in 2006, only 200 employees were working for the company. The company filed for bankruptcy in 2008 and Ernst & Young was employed as trustee.

More information on the Community Development Trust in Nova Scotia is available at www.gov.ns.ca/econ/cdtrust .