October 30, 2006 (1:00 p.m. EST)
No. 123

COMPANIES RECEIVE U.S. DUTY REFUNDS LESS THAN THREE WEEKS AFTER SOFTWOOD LUMBER AGREEMENT CAME INTO FORCE

The Honourable David Emerson, Minister of International Trade, and the Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Industry, today announced that an initial amount of approximately $950 million in softwood lumber duty refunds has been disbursed by Export Development Canada (EDC) to companies that had paid duties to the United States.

“Just weeks after the Agreement was implemented, our government has delivered on its promise to Canadian softwood lumber companies,” said Minister Emerson. “The refunds are going out ahead of schedule, and companies can realize the benefits of this agreement.”

The Government of Canada created the EDC mechanism in order to accelerate the return of softwood lumber deposits to Canadian companies. Less than three weeks after the Softwood Lumber Agreement came into force on October 12, 2006, Canadian companies have begun to receive refunds from the EDC mechanism.

“This badly needed injection of cash is coming at a critical time to an industry that is experiencing a market downturn and that provides more than 340,000 jobs, many of which are in small communities across Canada,” said Minister Bernier.

Under the terms of the Softwood Lumber Agreement, more than $5 billion will be returned to Canadian companies. EDC will continue to make expedited refunds to participating companies over the coming weeks.

For more information, visit http://www.softwood.gc.ca or http://www.edc.ca.

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For further information, media representatives may contact:

Jennifer Chiu
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Pacific Gateway and the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics
613-992-7332

Trade Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
613-996-2000
http://www.international.gc.ca

Isabelle Fontaine
Office of the Minister of Industry
613-995-9001

Media Relations
Industry Canada
613-943-2502