Steel fabrication company gets $5.1M government loan

The P.E.I. cabinet has approved a term loan of more than $5 million to MacDougall Steel Erectors in Borden-Carleton.

The money is for an expansion of the company's steel fabrication facility and to refinance an existing loan. MacDougall Steel manufactures steel buildings with 95 per cent of the products going off Island to the oil sands in Alberta or to the North.

Staff often travel to the sites to help erect the structures.

"We are adding a piece on to our shop which will house our new equipment being purchased. This will allow us to increase our capacity to be on more jobs and bid on larger jobs to meet our clients' deadlines," said company CFO Kirk MacKinnon.

"We are hoping to create at least 30 or 40 jobs over the next year or two."

Innovation minister Allen Roach says the provincial loan of $5.1 million is a good investment that will create jobs in rural P.E.I.

"They are a very strong export company," said Roach.

"The company has an excellent track record with the province in terms of lending. They are going to erect a new steel building there. As well as within that building, they are creating a training school."

The expansion should be complete by the end of March.