Four companies receive EDGE status

East Coast Drilling Company Limited, Summerwind Farms Ltd. (wood products division), Newfoundland Hard Rock Inc. and the Northeast Coast Sealers Co-operative Society are the four latest companies to qualify for the province's Economic Diversification and Growth Enterprises (EDGE) program. Judy Foote, Minister of Industry, Trade and Technology made the announcement today at the Corner Brook Chamber of Commerce Business Summit.

East Coast Drilling Company Limited, from Stephenville, was established in 1996 to provide core drilling to mining and oil and gas industries. The company has been able to expand through the purchase of a second rig with the latest in "slim hole" drilling technology. This technology will assist in the continued search for oil and gas on the west coast. The expansion will enable the company to hire an additional 15 seasonal workers.

Summerwind Farms Limited has established a wood products operation in Cormack consisting of kiln drying facilities, a secondary products production plant and a band saw primary saw mill. The company also has the capacity to do custom drying for local dimension lumber mills. Summerwind Farms Ltd. has already shipped several trailer truckloads of their wood products to customers in the United States. Mr. Hewitt's operation is a prime example of extracting value-added benefits from this sector. Summerwind has created 13 full-time jobs.

Northeast Coast Sealers Co-operative Society, whose membership includes over 500 sealers, operates a small primary seal processing plant in Fleur de Lys, where sealskins are processed and prepared for tanning. Incentives available from the EDGE program has enabled the co-operative to establish a tannery in Springdale. Work that was originally done out-of-province will now be done by Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. The tannery is expected to create 14 jobs.

Newfoundland Hard Rock Inc. started operations in Newfoundland in 1983 as a branch of Hard-Rok Drill Ltd. from Ontario, mainly selling drilling supplies and later expanding into other construction and mining products. The company is in the process of expanding from the retail business into manufacturing explosives, in partnership with Dyno Nobel Inc., a worldwide explosive supplier. Newfoundland Hard Rock Inc. will create a new industry for the province through import substitution and will generate 10 new jobs.

Minister Foote said, "The EDGE program continues to diversify our economy by assisting with the expansion of local businesses. These companies are creating new jobs and stimulating economic growth, not just in major centres but in rural parts of the province as well."

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