Angelina Forest Products announces plan to build a $100 million sawmill in Lufkin, Texas, US. This is part of a trend to save the town's economy, after the closure of Lufkin Industries.
"We think we're filling a need for the southern yellow pine lumber business, and being able to do it here in Lufkin, Texas is a great thing," said Stephen Raley, Angelina Forest Products Executive VP of Marketing and Sales. "We also feel there's a lot of talented labor in this area that we will be able to tap in to."
The decision to put a sawmill in, or near, Lufkin came after some research from the Texas A&M Forest Service.
"Our primary role is to determine is there enough wood out there for the mill," said Ed Dougal, Texas A&M Forest Service Wood Utilization Marketing specialist. "And most importantly is it sustainable into the future. We have an abundance of forest in East Texas, as you know, and right now our growth and projected growth into the future exceeds our removals or usage of it in sawmills. So we certainly found...that there would still be enough saw log to supply the proposed mill."
The new sawmill will be built at Lufkin Industry's Buck Creek facility on Highway 69 just south of the city of Lufkin. Also, the sawmill will boost the local economy by not only creating 100 new jobs but it will also create a trickle down effect.
The sawmill is expected to be completed around March or April 2019, and production is expected start soon after.
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