Federal Court - Christian Aboriginal Infrastructure Developments ...

Page: 329
company would have been generating, that the company
would have continued to re-invest part of these profits,
which is a very normal practice in the sawmill industry.
When you make money, you re-invest and improve your
mill.
So, here we’re showing that the company re-invested $5 million of
earned profits to further upgrade and improve the mill. And these
upgrades were related mainly to improving the lumber recovery
factor, which is basically using computers and optimization to
enhance the sawing accuracy of the mill.
2010 FC 495 (CanLII)
[1238] Based on the expert evidence of Mr. Van Leeuwen, that this upgrading was the normal
practice in the industry, I find that this assumption was reasonable and not speculative.
[1239] Mr. Van Leeuwen also assumed that Phase 2 of the mill project would have been completed.
Phase 2 contemplated dry kilns, planers and a cogeneration facility which would burn waste
products from the mill, generating electricity to operate the mill and allowing the Watson Lake
sawmill to sell excess power to the Watson Lake grid.
[1240] There is ample evidence in the record that Phase 2 was an integral part of the Plaintiffs’
business plan. There is also evidence that the Plaintiffs had undertaken the initial steps necessary to
commence Phase 2. I refer to the cogeneration consultation report created by Veco/Siemens. I also
refer to the read-ins of the examination for discovery of Mr. Alan Kerr. Mr. Kerr was questioned
about expenditures on Phase 2, at pages 2933 to 2934 of that transcript. The evidence was:
Q. But you did expend money on Phase II after the date of this
document, didn’t you